Out of the Dark
by Pyro63
Summary: Hermione returns to Grimmauld sooner than expected so that she can research horcruxes. She finds something entirely unexpected, something that could be the key to bringing Sirius back from the dead...
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: All recognizable characters belong to J.K. Rowling and Co.

Pairing: Hermione/Remus

Summary: Hermione returns to Grimmauld Place sooner than expected so that she can research Horcruxes. What she finds instead, might be the key to bringing Sirius back from the dead.

Length: This takes place in the summer after sixth year, so I may do a rewrite of DH, but I'm not sure yet. I'm 10 chapters and over 20,000 words in, so I don't know how long it will be just yet.

**Chapter 1**

Hermione took a sip of tea, trying to calm her wandering mind. She looked at the page she'd been trying to concentrate on, but she just couldn't seem to stop her thoughts from turning to other things. It wasn't like her not being able to concentrate. But she was getting nowhere with this book. Her mind turned to her parents, and the memory charm she had put on them. They were safe in Australia, and they wouldn't know they had a daughter. It was the only thing, the safest thing, she could do for them. She wouldn't let Voldemort or his Death Eaters use them against her. Hermione knew they might never forgive her, but she would rather they be alive.

Hermione groaned in frustration and shoved the book onto the table in front of her. She wasn't getting anywhere. She couldn't find a single thing on horcruxes. The library here at Grimmauld wasn't stocked like the one at Hogwarts, but it had a collection of Dark Arts books that was probably only rivaled by some of the other pureblood families. She'd figured she would find something, but there was nothing here. Not a single sentence on horcruxes. She had to help Harry some way. This is what she was good at. Researching, finding answers in all the dusty pages, but all her hard work and she had nothing to show for it.

She dropped her head in her hands and groaned out loud.

Remus Lupin watched from the doorway as Hermione groaned. She looked so forlorn with the open book in front of her, and her untouched tea. He knew she was trying to find something. She'd been holed up in here ever since she'd gotten back from her parents. While everyone else seemed to be off making wedding plans, she'd come here and stayed in the library. Mrs. Weasley had voiced her concerns that the three of them had something planned, but no one knew what it was. She'd also tried her best to get Hermione to come stay at the Burrow with the rest of the Weasley children, but Hermione had instead said she'd prefer to stay at Grimmauld for the time being. She had been holed up in the library the whole time she'd been here. She was looking for something. Remus knew that they wouldn't tell anyone what it was, but maybe he could be of some use. He was always good with books.

"Hermione?" he asked tentatively as he entered the room. "Is there anything I can help you with?"

Hermione shot up in her chair as she heard Professor Lupin's voice. "No, no. Thank you though." She grabbed the book in front of her and started thumbing through pages.

"Do you mind if I sit in here with you then?" He asked, holding up his own book.

"Oh no, of course not." Hermione's eyes scanned the pages at random as she looked through it. She knew she wasn't really letting the information sink in, but she didn't really want to just sit there. She knew if she went up to bed, that she wouldn't be able to sleep, so the least she could do is at try to find something. Maybe her eyes would catch something, even if her brain didn't seem to really be in the game.

"Why aren't you staying at the Burrow?" Remus asked her. She wasn't really reading the pages, just merely glancing at them until she turned the page. She looked increasingly frustrated as she went along. So Mrs. Weasley had been right. They were planning something.

"I wanted to use the library here," Hermione said. "And I love Mrs. Weasley, but she can be a bit…" Mrs. Weasley had told her time and time again that it wasn't proper for her to be staying at Grimmauld with only Remus there with her. Hermione had put her foot down and told her there were things she needed to use the library for. Hermione was of age, and not technically a Weasley, so there wasn't much Mrs. Weasley could do.

"Overbearing?" He asked with a slight smile.

Hermione looked at him, and noticed, not for the first time, how handsome he was when he smiled. She'd had a sort of crush on him in third year. He'd seemed so knowledgeable about everything, so smart. And he was handsome in a shabby sort of way. But when he smiled it took a few years off his face. She'd seen him smile so little since Sirius had died.

"Yeah. Then everything with the wedding… I just need some time away."

"Why aren't you with your parents?" Remus asked. Her visit with her parents had been very short, and she'd come back with a sort of gray pall over her.

She immediately stiffened. "They're taking a vacation."

Remus raised his eyebrows. "You sent them away."

"Yes." She sighed and looked him in the eyes. She wanted to tell someone. It felt like a weight on her chest, one that she wanted to remove. "They don't… they don't remember me. They don't know they have a daughter, and they think their names are Wendall and Monica Wilkins. I thought that was the safest thing I could do for them."

Remus stared at her with something akin to surprise on his face, with what she was sure was concern mingled in. "Molly was right. You guys are planning something. Don't suppose you'll tell me what it is?"

Hermione shook her head and looked back down at her book. "Dumbledore left Harry with a mission, and he said to tell me and Ron and no one else. That's how it has to be."

"Molly isn't going to give up you know."

Hermione slammed her book shut. "Well she's going to just have to be disappointed." She jumped up and marched across the room and grabbed another book at random. During her brief stay at the Burrow, Mrs. Weasley had been at her, and so had other members of the Order. She couldn't stand it anymore. She was sure they were after Ron, but right now, she needed to find out all she could about the horcruxes. So he was on his own to fend off his mother and the other members of the Order. Soon enough they would be getting Harry, and then the three of them would be on their own. She opened the book and started flipping pages at random again.

She sighed to herself. There was nothing in this books. She wasn't even really looking at the words, merely skimming each page, trying to find key words. If she was honest with herself she had wondered herself about the mission Dumbledore had left them. If they failed, who would carry on in their stead? Why couldn't they tell anyone about any of it? Hermione had questions that would never likely get answers. For now though, she would follow what Harry had told her, and tell no one what they were planning.

Remus watched her not even trying to read his own book. The three of them had so much on their shoulders, so much that they were trying to do. He wish they would let him help, let someone help. But they were, and would always be Dumbledore's Army. He continued to study her, his thoughts wondering. Hermione really was very beautiful. Her curls were a bit frizzy, but they still looked thick and luxurious. He idly wondered if they'd be soft to the touch. With his heightened senses he could smell her shampoo and it smelled like strawberries. Would the rest of her smell as sweet?

Remus's eyes widened a little as he noticed where his thoughts had turned. It wasn't right. She was twenty years his junior, and had been his student. He was an old werewolf with nothing to give a young woman. It was the same thing he'd told Tonks, but she hadn't listened. Everything he'd told Tonks was the truth, but he had never been attracted to her the way she had been attracted to him. The truth was, he was more attracted to Hermione right now, just watching her angrily thumb through a book, than he'd ever been to Tonks and all her attempts to throw herself at him.

He wanted nothing more than to try and help Hermione, but he knew that his efforts wouldn't be appreciated. Hermione wasn't likely to tell him anything if Harry had told her not to tell him. He wished that he could help. He'd spent quite a bit of time in this library, so he knew that he could help her. He looked at the titles she had on the table next to her. Most of them were Dark Arts books, and Remus couldn't help his mind from trying to figure out what it was she was looking for.

Hermione felt Remus's eyes on her and knew that he was trying desperately to figure out what it was she was looking for, but there was no way that she could tell him. Maybe when they went to get Harry, she could speak with him. Wouldn't they benefit from having someone as intelligent as Remus helping them?

Hermione kept flipping pages trying to push the thoughts out of her mind. She wouldn't say anything until she'd gotten the go ahead from Harry, so there was no use thinking of it. Hermione stopped on a page as she saw a small sketch of an archway. An archway with a moving veil.

The veil. Sirius.

She stopped and started reading her brain finally soaking up the words she was reading that it had refused to do earlier.

"_Death is said to rest on the other side. Only the dead can enter, but one walking with no beating heart can bring back one from the veil."_

"_Did you find what you were looking for?" Remus asked._

"_No, no. Not what I was looking for, but something else." She looked up at him and surprise colored every contour of her features. _

"_What then?" Remus asked, a little confused. _

"_I think I just found a way to bring Sirius back."_


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: Not mine.

A.N.: Sorry, sorry! If you're following my other story WYWS, you'll know that I've been renovating my house and that has really cut back on the writing and editing time. Since we're nearly done now, I should be able to update with more reliability. All of your reviews were wonderful, so thank you. Also thanks to everyone who alerted or favorited this story. Happy reading!

Chapter 2

Remus stared at Hermione in shock, wondering what it was exactly that she'd found. She stood up and walked over to sit on the edge of his chair. Even with the shocking words she'd just uttered, his body was incredibly aware of how close she was to him. Her hair smelled exactly like strawberries.

She shoved the book into his lap and pointed at the picture. "Look here. I was just looking through it and I came across this picture. I've never found anything on the veil before. I looked a little right after… but I was never able to find anything. But look, read this." She pointed to a passage halfway down the page.

Remus read it and looked up at Hermione. She was in full teacher mode, the one he'd seen her wear when she was lecturing Ron and Harry on a particularly hard piece of homework that she'd mastered, and they hadn't. "Look it goes further on to say that they think it was built by vampires, even though they don't know why. So it would go to say that a vampire could walk through it, and that they could bring someone back."

Remus stared in shock at the passage as he read it again. Then anger welled up in him at Hermione for putting this is front of him. He stood up so abruptly that she fell off the side of the chair and landed on her bum.

"Sirius is dead Hermione. He's gone. There's no bringing him back. Not now, not ever."

Hermione watched him stalk out of the library with a shocked expression on her face. She hadn't been thinking when she'd shown him the passage. She'd been so excited that she hadn't thought. Sirius had been his best friend and she'd shown him a way to bring him back. But it could not work. She grabbed the book from where it had fallen off Remus's lap and opened it back up, finding the page. She had to figure out how to do this. For everyone. They needed this. With Snape a traitor and Dumbledore dead, they needed some hope. For Harry, and for Remus. For some reason she'd do anything to see him smile again.

* * *

Hermione worked tirelessly for two days, grabbing books and pulling them up to the room she usually shared with Ginny when she was there. She didn't want Remus to find out she was still pursuing this. Not after the way he reacted. But she just couldn't give up, not when she could give Harry and Remus something to smile about, something to hope for.

Harry had given up Ginny because he was afraid that someone would go after her. He'd lost Sirius, the only real family he'd ever known, and Remus had lost his best friend after finally getting him back. No she couldn't give up. She was still looking for something on horcruxes, but she couldn't let go about the veil. She looked up all she could about vampires, even though she'd read quite a bit about them before during some of her independent reading. There wouldn't be any messing this up, so every scrap of knowledge she could get might help in some small way.

She couldn't do this by herself though. She'd have to go to Lupin again if she wanted to get anything done. Now she only had to figure out how to get in to the Department of Mysteries again. And find a vampire willing to help them. That would be the hard part.

A knock sounded on her door and Hermione didn't even look up from the books scattered around her on the bed before muttering a muted "Enter."

Remus opened the door to see Hermione on the other side, books laying open around her. She'd pulled her hair up into a messy bun, but a few tendrils had escaped to caress her neck and face. For a second he imagined his lips caressing her skin, but he shoved it to the back of his mind.

"Are you still looking at things on that veil?" He asked, a little harsher than he intended.

She looked up at him defiantly. "Yes. I can't find anything on… the thing I was looking for before, so I figured this was a good way to bide my time until Harry can be taken from the Dursley's. I have to do this. I can't just give up." Her face softened. "But I'm sorry for showing it to you before I had any concrete evidence, it was rather insensitive of me."

His feelings towards her softened at her apology. "I understand. But Hermione, Sirius is dead. There isn't any bringing him back. Nothing is known about the veil."

"I've found stuff," she sniffed a little petulantly. "And I wasn't wrong about finding a way to bring him back. Just wrong about showing you. I've found vague references everywhere to an archway, all through vampire history, but mostly pertaining to one family. I think they are the ones who made it."

"So you think that a vampire could go into the archway and return?"

She nodded. "Yes. They're already technically dead, so it would go to explain why they would be able to go through the veil and return."

Remus took a deep breath. She wasn't going to give up on this. "So how do you suppose we go about doing this?"

Hermione looked surprised. "We?'

"You don't think you can do this yourself do you?"

"No. I just didn't think I'd be able to convince you to help me after…"

He entered the room the rest of the way and shut the door behind him. It wouldn't do for any of the Order to hear them if they wanted to keep this quiet. Grimmauld wasn't considered Headquarters anymore, but Mad-Eye and Shacklebolt still stopped in to talk to him about Order business. "So all we have to do is find a vampire that would be willing to help us, sneak into the Department of Mysteries and bring Sirius back."

Hermione smiled at him, and he felt it like a punch to the gut. "You make it all sound so easy." Her smile dropped though. "I feel like I have to do this. We need this. After Snape turning and killing Dumbledore…" Her eyes teared up. She had to do this for Harry and for the man standing in front of her. For everyone. "Harry deserves some happiness after everything." She looked down at her lap and started picking at a piece of lint on the comforter. "And Sirius was your best friend. You deserve some happiness too."

Remus looked at her sharply. He was incredibly surprised that she was concerned with him and for some reason he felt a knot in the middle of his chest.

Hermione dared a glance up at him and saw the incredibly tender look he was giving her. She wanted to run her hand down his face and smooth away all the wrinkles he had. His life had been incredibly unforgiving, and she wanted to brighten it a little. Maybe just as much as she wanted to reunite Harry with the only family he'd ever known.

The thought scared her a little.

Hermione shoved her feelings to the back of her mind, just as she'd done many times before. "If we can find this family of vampires we might be able to find out more about how the archway was created. Then we can figure out how to bring Sirius back."

Remus sat himself down on the edge of Hermione's bed and perused the books she had spread out around her. There were pieces of parchment with notes scribbled on them in Hermione's cramped, but elegant writing, laying all over the bed. Remus couldn't help but let a small smile grace his face as he picked up her through notes.

"Which vampire family is it?"

"LaRou. Why are they called families?"

"You understand how vampires are created yes?"

Hermione nodded. "Vampires drain the blood of their victim, then share their blood with them. Their blood creates a magical bond that creates new life, even though the person is actually dead."

Remus nodded, and Hermione noticed how incredibly handsome he was when he was lecturing.

"This bond the blood creates, causes a connection between the vampires. The lines they create can get rather extensive, but each person in the line feels this connections. They call themselves a family and the oldest living vampire in the line is the leader of sorts. Each vampire that is created takes on the family surname."

Hermione nodded. "So where do we go from here?"

Remus sighed as he looked at all the book scattered about. He could feel a small sliver of hope ignite inside him. He tried to push it down, to smother it, but it just seemed to flame brighter. He didn't want to hope that they could get Sirius back, only for nothing to come of it, but it was there all the same.

"Keep trying to find as much as you can on this family. I'll see what I can find."

* * *

Hermione stared at the book in front of her not really giving it much attention. She was worried about Remus. He should be back by now. Ron had flooed over from the Burrow to get a few hours away from his mother. He was going on about a Quidditch game with his brothers, but Hermione couldn't find the patience to pay him much attention. Remus had gone to a contact he had in the underground to see if they could get in contact with this family of vampires.

They had found the vampires that were thought to have made the archway, and Hermione thought that they were their best bet to finding out anything at all about the veil and how it had come to be. Remus agreed with her.

Hermione nearly snorted, wondering when he had become Remus to her instead of Professor Lupin. With a small smile he'd told her long ago that she could call him Remus, since he was hardly her professor any longer. But it hadn't come naturally to her until he'd sat next to her on the bed the night before and listened earnestly to the things she'd found out. He didn't think she was a insufferable know-it-all, he actually took her thoughts into account and gave her his opinion. He wasn't put off by her thirst for knowledge. He actually listened to her. All Ron ever wanted to talk about was Quidditch.

"Hey, Hermione, are you even listening to me?"

Hermione's head shot up from her book at Ron's question. "What?"

"I'm sitting here trying to talk to you and all you're doing is reading."

"I'm trying to find something on…" Hermione stopped before she said the word out loud and looked around, making sure that there was no one within headquarters besides the two of them. "The horcruxes for Harry. If you want me to sit here and listen to you blather on about Quidditch or whatever it is you're going on about, fine." Hermione shut her book and looked at Ron expectantly.

"Sorry," he said a little sheepishly. "I'm just getting tired of mum badgering me about what it is we're doing."

"You just have to ignore her. This is important, what we're doing. This could be the only way to defeat Voldemort." Ron winced at the name. "You know it is. I'm trying to find out everything Dumbledore didn't have the chance to tell us. The library here has a pretty extensive collection of Dark Arts books, which is why I decided to stay here instead of the Burrow." There was even one book that had tried to snap her hand off for trying to touch it because she was muggle born.

Ron nodded and looked at his watch. "I better get back before mum realizes I'm gone and comes looking for me."

"You didn't even tell her you left?"

"She thinks I'm out clearing the garden of gnomes. I'd figured I'd slip away while she was talking with Fleur about flowers for the wedding or something."

"Honestly Ron. She's going to know you're gone."

Ron gave a half smile. "I know. But I couldn't resist."

Hermione gave him a slight smile. "I'll let you know if I find anything."

Ron nodded and came over to hug her. "Come back and save me from mum when you can, okay?"

Hermione nodded and watched as he left by floo. She gave a deep breath and knew she'd have to wait a while before she'd hear anything from Remus. She told herself that he knew what he was doing, he had quite a few contacts in the werewolf community, since he'd spent quite a bit of time with them lately for the Order.

She still couldn't stop herself from worrying.

Remus stared into his mug of cheap butter beer and waited for his contact to arrive. He wasn't sure what he thought of Hermione's plan to get Sirius back. He couldn't let his hopes get up too high this early. There was no telling what or who would be there to pull them out from under him again. But he couldn't help the small tinge of hope that was raising inside him, telling him that soon he just might see his friend Sirius again. He tried to shove it down, but it kept springing back. Hope springs eternal.

Remus nearly snorted out loud and took another sip of his butter beer and hoped that he would arrive soon. He'd been nursing the same beer for an hour and anymore might look suspicious. He didn't have enough money with him to have another one. He didn't have the steady pay he had while he was working at Hogwarts, and he couldn't really reconcile spending his money on over priced butter beer.

His thoughts drifted to Hermione and her concern for him. She actually seemed like she wanted him to be happy and she thought having Sirius back would do that. It would certainly help. Sirius had been his best friend. His only real friend that had stuck by him when he'd found out he was a werewolf and hadn't been disgusted by it. Sirius, along with James, had even went through the trials of turning themselves in Animagi so they could be with him during the full moon.

Hermione had figured it out early on in third year, and she hadn't told a soul. She thought the treatment of werewolves was right up there with the treatment of house elves. He'd heard Hermione lecture Ron and Harry numerous times on the unfair treatment of house elves, and watched as they rolled their eyes and agreed with her just so she would stop. His lips lifted up into a half-smile just thinking about her commanding tone. She would start in on a lecture like she actually was a teacher, and not stop until she thought that Harry and Ron agreed with her, or she knew she wasn't going to get anywhere. She stood up for what she believed in, even when her two best friends didn't. At least she had more mettle that he did. When James and Sirius had started in on Snape he'd just stood back and pretended not to see it.

"I hope that smile isn't for me," a voice said beside him. He snapped his neck up so fast he was sure he'd hear it creak. The man sat down across the table from him and pulled the hood of his cloak back just enough so Remus could see his face. He was a fellow werewolf.

"Hello Vorcheck."

"Lupin." He inclined his head to him. "You've been asking people all kinds of questions. About a certain vampire family."

Remus inclined his head to him to let him know to continue.

"This family don't like questions being asked about them," he said slowly.

"I understand that," Remus said carefully. "But this would count as a personal favor if you could tell me anything you know about them."

Vorcheck took a deep breath and scratched at his beard. "You owe me big for this Lupin. I'm only doing this since you're a fellow werewolf. So don't let it go to your head." He took a deep breath. "The family you're looking for is very secretive. Not much is known about them. The only way you're going to find out anything is to go to one of them yourselves. There's one, a female that goes by the name of Ariel. She's keeps to herself, but I hear that she fights against You-Know-Who. She's the youngest of that family, but she's still extremely dangerous and she'll kill you if she thinks you're getting into her business."

"Where do I find her?"

"The last I heard she's been staying around the warehouses in muggle London. She has a place there. Be careful."

Lupin nodded as Vorcheck got up to leave. Now all he had to do was tell Hermione.


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: All recognizable characters belong to J.K. Rowling and Co. I just take them out to play for a little while, and I'll put them back just the way I found them… okay maybe not just the way I found them…

A.N.: I know, it's been to long again, but this chapter is much longer than the previous two so hopefully that makes up for it. I'm introducing an OC here, so I'm a little nervous about this chapter. Reviews would be helpful and are greatly appreciated!

Chapter 3

Remus and Hermione walked slowly along the alleyway checking it for signs of life. When all they saw were a few mice and an alley cat they kept going. Remus wasn't sure why he even allowed Hermione to come with him. He'd been telling her what he'd found and she'd immediately asked when they were leaving. He'd of course told her that it to dangerous for her to go with him. Somehow she'd talked him into it, saying she'd keep her wand out and agreeing to stay with him, and stay behind him. He wasn't sure what reception that they would get. He checked behind him, and sure enough Hermione had a tight grip on her wand.

He'd talked to a few other wizards of questionable loyalty, and he'd gotten a good idea of where she would stay. Everyone said that he was crazy for trying to talk to Ariel, but this was their best chance at finding a way to get Sirius back. All of Hermione's research pointed to this one vampire, who might be able to help them, or might eat them for interfering in her affairs.

They got to the end of the alley, and he did a quick spell to tell him which warehouse had wards on it. Sure enough there was one with quite a few defensive wards around it, along with a mild cloaking spell which is why his mind kept trying to get him to look elsewhere.

"This one?" Hermione asked softly. Remus nodded at her, wondering what they should do next now that they had found it. Hermione stopped his questioning by walking up and knocking on the door.

He shot her a look.

"What? Do you want to just barge in? We should at least be polite."

"She's right you know," a female voice said behind him. "I would have been most displeased if you'd just barged in."

Remus swirled around, and shoved Hermione behind him, surprised. It had been a long time since someone had snuck up on him. A woman stood before them, with honey blonde hair down to her collar bone, and cool creamy skin. She had on muggle jeans and a leather jacket, and he could make out a knife strapped to her belt. She smelt like vampire, but something more, something different.

"You are Ariel?"

"Yes. I hear you've been looking for me."

He nodded at her. "We have a few questions for you."

She smirked at him. "Why should I answer them?"

"We're hoping you have the same goal as we do."

She seemed to size him up for a minute. "Alright werewolf. Come in." She moved to the door and opened it, walking in. He followed her into the warehouse, knowing this could be a trap. He checked to make sure that Hermione still had a firm grip on her wand; he held his down to his side, making sure that he would have it ready at a moment's notice.

He followed her down a darkened, derelict hallway until she opened the door at the end and they came to a small room that she obviously used as a sitting room. It was surprisingly cozy. There was a fire blazing in the fireplace, and there were chairs and throw rugs, along with a small table that the was covered with books. Ariel unzipped her jacket and flung it over the back of a chair.

Ariel wordlessly indicated a place for them to sit.

Hermione raised her eyebrows at her and went to sit on the small sitting couch. Remus took a seat beside her. He was obviously surprised to find the inside so cozy and inviting. He didn't put his wand away and neither did she though. He was expecting something else.

"Sorry I don't actually eat, so I can't offer you anything," Ariel said as she sat down in the chair across from them. "Now if you'll be so kind as to tell me your names." Hermione noticed that it was more of a command than a question. She was used to people following her orders.

"I'm Remus Lupin and this is Hermione Granger."

Hermione felt it when her gaze rested on her. In the light from the fireplace Hermione could tell that her eyes were a piercing blue-green. She was very pretty, and Hermione felt quite insignificant sitting across from her.

"So what is I can do you for?" Ariel asked, her eyes darting back and forth between the two of them. "Are you here to try and recruit me?"

"No actually we have some questions for you," Hermione said. Remus gave her a look that clearly said 'shut up' and turned to speak, but Ariel cut him off.

"I believe Miss Granger was speaking Lupin." She spoke to him, but kept her eyes on Hermione. It made her skin crawl a little and she told herself to get a hold of it. She'd wanted this, this had been their goal. She was sitting her in front of a vampire that could possibly lead the way back to Sirius. Not only that, but they may have found another ally in the war against Voldemort. She needed to do her best.

Hermione pulled a book out of her pocket that she had shrank down to size. She used her wand to make it it's regular size and then opened it to the page she had bookmarked. "I believe that you're from the family that made this." Hermione set the book down on the table and turned it towards Ariel. She leaned across to look at the picture. She caught a glimpse of it and looked up at Hermione and Remus sharply. Hermione gulped.

"Where did you get this book and why do you want to know about the arch? And don't lie to me."

She left the threat unspoken, but Hermione understood clearly.

Remus cut in before Hermione could answer, his grip on his wand tightening until his knuckles whitened. He didn't raise it though. He could feel her slightly shaking, and he grabbed her hand. He told himself it was only for comfort and that his hand didn't tingle where their skin was touching, that his intentions were completely honest. She didn't complain though, only held onto his hand tighter.

"A year ago, a friend of ours… fell through the arch."

Ariel's eyes got wide, and she looked back and forth between the two of them. She seemed to relax a little. "You want to know whether or not you can get them out of the arch."

Remus nodded at her. She seemed to consider this as she looked down at the picture on the page. Hermione seemed to relax a little, but she didn't let go of his hand. She seemed to sink into his side a little.

Hermione nearly sighed at the smell of Remus sitting next to her. He smelled like parchment and an earthy smell that was incredibly alluring. Working with Remus had been the past few days had been hell on her senses, and her concentration. She could barely think when he was right next to her like this, and the only thing she wanted to do was bury her face up against his neck and inhale. She knew she shouldn't be distracted by Remus when they were in a situation such as this, but she couldn't help the way her body reacted to him. It was really quite frustrating.

Ariel's voice cut her out of her musings, and she paid attention. "Where have you seen the arch?"

Remus's eyebrows lifted. "Why should we tell you?"

"A trade. You tell me where it is, and I'll tell you what I know about it." She regarded him steadily. "We're on the same side Lupin. We're working towards the same goal."

Hermione noticed that her face barely showed emotion, even when she had threatened them. It was odd and incredibly disconcerting. Her eyes seemed to be the only thing that moved, and Hermione made a note to watch them better.

Remus wanted to hear her say it. "And what is that?"

"Why for Voldemort to die of course." She looked at him as she would a small child that was cute, but not incredibly bright. "I've heard of both of you of course. Remus Lupin, the werewolf. And Hermione Granger, best friend to Harry Potter. That's the only reason I'm trusting you with this sort of information."

Hermione was surprised that her name was ever mentioned all. "Don't look so surprised dear. With friends like yours it would be hard to go unnoticed. I make a habit of know whose side everyone is on. Besides your name was all over the Daily Prophet a few years ago, during the Tri-Wizard tournament."

Hermione scoffed. "Rita Skeeter."

Ariel's mouth lifted in a semblance of a smile. Hermione could see the tips of her fangs and gave an involuntary shudder. Ariel's mouth turned back to it's normal look, and Hermione could swear she'd almost looked… hurt for a moment. Maybe that was why her face never changed when she talked. She didn't want anyone to see her fangs.

"Now where is the archway?"

Remus looked at Hermione for a moment, getting confirmation from her that they were really going to give out the information. Hermione gave an almost imperceptible nod of her head. This was the only way to get Sirius back, and Hermione had a gut feeling that they could trust the vampire in front of them. She may have not spent much time at all in vampire's company, but she wouldn't base her opinion of the woman in front of her on rumors and hearsay. Popular opinion said that werewolves were half-breeds and mongrels that weren't fit for proper society. Hermione looked at the man beside her and knew that wasn't true.

"It's in the Ministry of Magic in the Department of Mysteries."

Ariel took a deep breath. "Damn. That is going to be hard to get to, you know."

Hermione nodded. "Yeah I remember." Hermione squeezed Remus's hand, without even thinking of letting go. It was too comforting. Plus she'd spent many hours wondering what his hand would feel like. It was callused and large, but for some reason, it just seemed to… fit. She unconsciously started rubbing her thumb back and forth along the skin on the back of his hand, a gesture that did not go unnoticed by Remus.

Remus noticed that Ariel had a soft, sad look in her eyes as she looked at the two of them. She seemed to shake herself, and she got up and went over to a small bookcase in the corner and pulled a slightly dusty book off the shelf. She started flipping through it.

"What I'm about to tell you, you must take with you to your graves. I'm taking a chance that you won't betray me to anyone, and I expect that secret kept."

"I promise," Hermione said, her mind opening up as she readied herself for what she was sure would be a long lecture on the history of the archway.

Remus noticed Hermione perk up as she listened to Ariel start to speak. She was going into student mode, her brain ready to soak up any knowledge anyone was ready to give her. It was incredibly adorable.

"The archway goes back almost a thousand years. My family worked closely with wizards of that time to create what they hoped would be a doorway between this life and the next. The theory was they needed someone that was already dead to bring back the living, which is why the wizards were willing to work with the vampires in the first place."

"Why would they try and create something to bring back the dead?" Hermione asked.

Ariel shrugged. "No one is completely sure why, but one can hazard a guess. Unbeatable armies. Dead loved ones. There are a million reasons, take your pick. All we know for sure is that it didn't work."

"It didn't work?"

"No." She turned a few more pages in the book she was still holding and then dropped it on the table. Remus and Hermione edged forward to see a sketch of the archway when it was only half built. Wizards and vampires stood around it, talking to each other and gesturing at the archway.

"Then what does it do?"

"As far as we know it's a place between this world and they next. There have been many theories about a sort of stasis, never allowing the person who goes through it to move on. We're not sure exactly since no one has ever successfully taken someone out of it."

Hermione felt her heart drop down to her stomach. She spared a glance at Remus, but his face was incredibly flat. But she knew that the words had effected him, the way he was squeezing her hand. It hurt a little, but she wasn't going to stop him if it gave him comfort. She was the one to take him on the wild goose chase and then have the proverbial door slammed in his face.

"But," Ariel continued "no one has tried for a few hundred years, when the archway was stolen from my family. They've been looking for it for several decades. The reason why I want to know where it is, is to keep it out of the hands of my family."

Hermione looked at her. "But why would you want to do that?"

Ariel sat down. "What I'm going to tell you is mostly in that book, but I can condense it down. When my family saw what the wizards had created, whether it worked or not, they were incredibly jealous of the power that they wield. Our very existence is rooted in magic, and yet we have little command over it. So my family decided that they would try and merge our two races together. It's of course been tried before without much success. Vampires live by their teeth and their strength. The instinct is to rip and tear and drink your enemies blood. Not to wield magic. But my ancestors saw the strength in it, the power. So they started turning wizards where they could. Of course since they wielded magic, it was hard to convince them of the turning, so they had to start out small. This took centuries for them to get even the simplest of magic users converted over, and to start thinking above their instincts."

"What kind of instincts?" Hermione asked, confused.

Remus wasn't confused. He felt the same thing while he was a werewolf. "To bite, Hermione. The instinct isn't to pull out a wand and use it, but to bite."

"You make vampires sound like animals."

Ariel looked at her with a hard face. "In some ways we are, Miss Granger. In some ways we are nothing more than animals."

Hermione could barely fathom the certainty of a statement like that. To think a whole race nothing more than animals, it reminded her of the Ministry's attitude towards werewolves. "I don't think I can believe that."

"For someone so incredibly learned Miss Granger, you're naïve."

"But look at werewolves. They have a bad reputation, but they aren't bad at all."

"We aren't human, Miss Granger. We drink blood. And there are bad werewolves. And there are good vampires. It all depends are who we were before we were turned I think, along with our makers. There isn't a strict set of rules for everyone. But we have instincts that can't be denied."

Remus watched the emotions play across Hermione's face as she contemplated this. He was incredibly touched that she felt so strongly about werewolves and how they were treated by the Ministry. His life would have been incredibly easier had everyone had Hermione's views on things. He noticed she was still rubbing the back of his hand with her thumb, probably without even noticing, but it warmed him all the way down to his toes.

"If you'll continue?" Remus asked, tearing his gaze away from Hermione and the things she'd made him feel in the span of a few short days.

Ariel gave him a short nod. "They continued like this for quite a while, trying to train the wizards to fight their instincts and use the wand instead. Finally they realized that they were going about it the wrong way. They were turning the wrong wizards. They were mostly turning ones that they thought would make good vampires, ones with a disposition of violence. The decided it would be easier to turn the softer ones, that were already good witches or wizards but wouldn't be ready to tear someone's throat out at a moments notice. Then they would act like that, but be their tools."

"Did it work?" Remus asked.

"In a way." Ariel said. "I am the last of the line that I know of." Her eyes became unfocused for as she recalled something from her past. "My parents moved to London so I could go to Hogwarts. They felt it was the best school for me. I graduated in the top part of my class."

Hermione gazed at her afraid to ask what happened next. "I've never seen you in any of the school pictures."

Ariel gave a small chuckle that was totally humorless. "Of course not. I graduated nearly eighty years ago."

Hermione knew that vampires were nearly immortal, but it was hard to wrap her mind around that his being was nearly a hundred years old. She didn't look to much older that Hermione.

"Now I told you that story so you would understand this. My family has a history of being cruel. And they have sided with Voldemort in this war. He has promised them equality under the law. They plan to get the archway back and figure out where it went wrong in the first place and fix it. They now have the means to do so."

Remus was the first to grasp what that meant for the Order. "Even if we somehow managed to kill Voldemort…"

Ariel nodded to him. "They would just bring him back. And anyone else who we managed to kill. With Voldemort in charge of the dementors, the only way to stop the Death Eaters now is to kill them. But if they get a hold of the arch and manage to fix it, and use it."

"There would be a never ending stream of Death Eaters," Hermione gasped. "We could kill them, and they would just bring them back while the ones on our side…"

"Would stay dead. Now you know why I have to find that arch. And why I have to destroy it."

Hermione nodded, her eyes tearing up. They would never be able to get Sirius back if they destroyed the arch, but they would have to. There would be no stopping Voldemort if he got a hold of that arch. It was bad enough with the horcruxes… but if they ever figured out a way to do it, it would horrible.

"Why doesn't Voldemort have a vampire turn him?" Hermione asked.

"During the turning you die. Completely, until the vampire gives you his blood. In a way you are forever connected to your maker, and subservient to them to a certain degree. He would literally be putting his life in their hands and trusting them not to just let him die. Also I don't see him being subservient to anyone."

"Couldn't he just kill them when they were done?"

"Yes. But any vampire would know that, and of course wouldn't do it. It would be better to invoke his wrath and not turn him, then to turn him, and face certain death. Also we're not immortal. Just long lived. The magic holding us as we are, dries up, and so we die. There is no stopping that, no second chance."

Hermione nodded. "Do you think there is any way that we could save our friend?"

Remus knew she had to ask and he was silently dreading the answer. When Ariel didn't answer with a flat out negative, but instead asked Hermione to describe the events leading up to Sirius's fall into the veil, he felt a small spark of hope return to him.

Ariel got up from the chair she was sitting in and started pacing around the room, her boots making a dull thud on the floor. "I do have a theory. I am much different from many vampires before me. I can wield magic, and that may be one of the reasons why my line started turning wizards. The reason was never recorded of course, but it seems a sound theory."

Remus breathed a small sigh of relief. There was still hope that they could save Sirius. If there was any chance for him to live, it was this vampire standing in front of him. She knew things about the veil that they would have never been able to find without her.

"Where do we go from here?" Hermione asked.

"Forward," Ariel said with a small closed mouth smile.


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: Characters still don't belong to me.

A.N.: So not a whole lot happening in this chapter, but our two favorite characters get some needed time together, so savor it. Thank you so much for your reviews, I'm heading over right now to reply to them. You guys are awesome.

Chapter 4

Hermione yawned as she woke up the next morning and threw her slippers on, not even bothering to put her dressing gown on. Ariel had followed them back last night, and they had given her a spare room at Grimmauld place. She had been insistent that they stick together while they planned out what they were going to do. Her and Remus had decided that there wouldn't be any way around it, and that they would have to bring her into Grimmauld. Dealing with other members of the Order would be difficult. When Hermione had voiced her concerns out loud, Ariel had just laughed and said they probably wouldn't notice her, since she slept all day. Hermione hadn't slept very well once they got back and now she was up way to early for how late she stayed up.

She ran a hand through her mess of curls and crept down the stairs to find Remus sitting at the kitchen table reading the newspaper.

"Morning," Hermione greeted as she made her way into the kitchen. Remus's hair looked a little more disheveled that usual. For some reason it made her want to run her fingers through it and straighten it out.

Remus looked up from his paper to be greeted by the figure of Hermione. He stiffened a little as he watched her walk around the kitchen in her camisole and low riding pajama bottoms. He swallowed rather harshly when he saw that she wasn't wearing a bra, and forced his eyes back down to his paper.

"Morning," he greeted, in what he hoped wasn't a strained voice.

"Eggs? Sausage?" Hermione asked as she pulled a few pans down.

"Sounds good." Remus said, his eyes involuntarily following her form around the kitchen as she made their breakfast. She was so lovely, so beautiful, and incredibly intelligent, something he'd always found attractive. But she was twenty years his junior, with a long, full life ahead of her. She didn't need an old, broken werewolf lusting after her.

Hermione felt his eyes on her as she made breakfast for the both of them. She could feel the heat rising in her cheeks, and a twist in her belly. It made her feel, beautiful, empowered, to know that he was looking at her. She liked it. She liked him.

Hermione sat his breakfast down in front of him with a smile, and Remus couldn't help but smile back as she sat down next to him. It seemed so domestic, so natural. Hermione took the page of the paper he was finished with and went about eating her breakfast. He couldn't help but keep glancing at her, his mind entertaining fantasies it should not be entertaining about a witch twenty years his junior.

Hermione tried to concentrate on the paper in front of her, but she kept feeling Remus's eyes on her. She could admit to herself that she was attracted to Remus Lupin. There was no use denying it. He was rather handsome in that shabby bookish way of his. Plus he was incredibly intelligent, and he listened to her ideas and theories, without brushing them or her off as a bossy know-it-all. He seemed to share her thirst for knowledge that she hadn't been able to share with Harry or Ron.

The thought of Ron confused her. She thought she was in love with him, but now that seemed like a shallow conjecture. She knew she was attracted to Remus, but she wasn't sure how those feelings made her feel about her feelings for Ron. She sighed softly to herself, and ran her teeth over her bottom lip. She was making herself dizzy wondering about how certain feelings for someone made her feel for someone else. Was it natural to be attracted to someone she'd spent the last few days with? They'd researched side by side, and when they were at Ariel's they'd held hands. Just for comfort? Or was it something more?

Hermione didn't doubt that he was attracted to her, but she wasn't the kind of witch to just have a once off, and go on from there. That wasn't the way she did things. Hermione had a feeling that if she ever let Remus know she returned his attraction, he wouldn't be very receptive. He didn't seem like the kind of person that thought he deserved happiness. A stray thought crossed Hermione's brain. Wasn't he dating Tonks?

Hermione's stomach seemed to drop very near her feet. Maybe she should just ask him about it? She took a deep breath and continued to try and concentrate while eating, but the feel of Remus's eyes on her was making her skin feel hot, and she could feel her cheeks turn a little pink under his scrutiny. She wished now that she'd at least tried to tame the halo of curls around her head before she'd stumbled down from her room.

Remus's eyes snapped back to his paper as Hermione's chair scraped across the floor as she rose from her seat. He was scandalized by the thoughts that had been going through his brain, fantasies concerning the kitchen table that he knew were wrong to be having about a woman twenty years his junior. He knew Hermione would be repulsed if she knew what he'd been thinking about doing with her on the table she'd just finished eating breakfast on.

"Are you done?" Hermione asked.

Remus snapped his head up at her and gave her a quick nod. She leaned over and grabbed the plate before he could hand it to her, causing her to come quite close to him. He felt his whole body stiffen as he took in the faint smell of her strawberry shampoo. She smelled exquisite.

Hermione's eyes widened as she in turn took in Remus's scent. It was an earthy smell that gave her a small tug on her nether regions. She quickly turned and charmed the dishes to wash themselves. "I'm going to take a shower Professor," Hermione mumbled, falling back on his title in her nervousness.

Remus barely had time to make appropriate noises before she rushed out of the room.

Hermione rushed through her shower, and tamed her curls down to what she hoped was an appropriate amount of bushiness. She could smell the strawberry scent of her favorite shampoo as she rifled through her clothes to find her favorite pair of jeans. They were comfortable, and hugged her curves just so. She grabbed a shirt that was comfy and also fit quite well. If she reached over her head, it would show off a few inches of her stomach.

Wait.

Was she dressing to impress _Professor Lupin? _

Hermione realized quite readily, that yes, she was. Hermione groaned and sat down on her bed heavily. She admitted to herself that she was attracted to Remus. He'd become Remus to her the past few days that they had been hunched over books together, looking up information on Ariel's vampire family, and anything they could get about the veil. She was attracted to him, and she wanted him to be attracted to her.

Hermione had the urge to suddenly tear off the clothes she had adorned for Remus, and find the baggiest, unappealing clothes she could find and put them on instead. But she knew that would be childish.

Besides, Hermione thought as she got up and stood in front of the mirror. She did look _quite _good.

* * *

Remus stared at the book in front of him, trying to stop himself from glancing at the library door every few seconds, wondering where Hermione had run off to. He'd barely been able to scrape out a response when she'd run out of the room at breakfast. He wondered idly if it was because of his staring, but she didn't seem to notice while she was eating.

He knew that as soon as this project was over, he would have to get as far away from Miss Hermione Granger as he possibly could. This fascination he had with her would have to stop. She was twenty years his junior and she had a bright future ahead of her. The last thing she needed was her werewolf ex-professor mooning after her.

The door to the library opened and he looked up to see Hermione with her wand in one hand and a book in the other. She flashed him a smile before going to peruse the books.

Remus felt his whole body go still as he took her in. She was wearing her Muggle clothes and he no longer had any doubts in his mind that Hermione had the body of a woman. Jeans hugged her hips and her bum, her shirt hugged her flat stomach and breasts and the halo of curls around her head had been tamed somewhat. He wanted nothing more than to walk up behind her and press his groin into her supple arse. Remus took several deep breaths to try and get his body under control and made sure the book he was holding was firmly in his lap.

Hermione smiled to herself as she felt his eyes on her again. She wished she had time to explore this thing that was developing between them, but she knew that she had to keep her mind on her research. She sat down in the chair across from Remus and started telling him what she thought they should start on for their rescue mission.

They constructed a map of everything they knew about the Ministry, going on their memory alone. Hermione wished they could consult someone else, but she wasn't sure who they could trust with their secret that wouldn't think them completely mad. Moody maybe? As an Auror he would have been in the Ministry a lot. Maybe Tonks? She shuddered a little to herself and vowed to use her only as a last resort. She knew she was just being a tad jealous, but if there was something between the two, she certainly didn't want to subject herself to having to watch.

Remus sketched a drawing on a large piece of parchment, Hermione giving her input and correcting small mistakes that she could see. When they finally finished Hermione felt her stomach rumble and knew that it was well past lunchtime.

Hermione filled a tray with sandwiches and a warm pot of tea. She knew they would need the caffeine to keep them going through the rest of the day. She was sure that he got about as much sleep as she did, which wasn't very much.

She levitated the whole tray and returned with it to the library. In the corner there was a small couch with a table in front of it, and she sat the tray down on it.

"You read my mind," Remus said, as he stood up with a stretch. Hermione for a few brief moments, got to look at his body, and found that she liked what she saw. His shoulders weren't to broad, but big enough to envelop her in his hold. He was taller than her by several inches, and she could see a few lines around his hazel eyes that she knew were there prematurely because of his lycanthropy. She wanted to wrap her arms around him and smooth away every wrinkle in his skin, kiss her way up his neck before finding out for herself if he lips were really as kissable as they looked.

Remus stopped his stretch to realize that Hermione was openly staring at him, her mouth slightly open. She flushed pink and pointed to the sandwiches. "I wasn't sure what you liked, so I made a few of everything."

Remus smiled as he noticed that the tray was stacked rather high for just the two of them. "I think I'll find something I like there." He sat down next to her on the couch and poured them both a cup of tea, finding himself soothed by the warmth. Even though he knew that he couldn't have anything even resembling a romantic relationship with her, he enjoyed these moments with her. She was a highly intelligent young woman, vastly read on many subjects and he found he rather liked debating with her. She had an astute memory and was always ready to learn something new.

Hermione took a bit of her sandwich and watched as Remus tucked into his. "Can I ask you a personal question Professor?"

Remus swallowed his bite of his sandwich and looked at her, his brow furrowed in confusion. "I guess so."

"Are you and Tonks together?"

Remus was sure his surprise showed on his face. Whatever he thought she'd ask, this was not it. He wasn't quite sure how to answer it. He took a sip of his tea. "Why do you ask?"

Hermione blushed profusely and stammered out, "Sorry, sorry! I was just curious. I didn't mean to pry. Forget I asked." She mentally berated herself for being so nosy. They had developed a report and she didn't want to ruin it by meddling in his private business.

Remus stared at her as she blushed, and noted to himself how beautiful she was when she was all flushed. She must just be curious, what with Nymphadora's vehement declaration in front of everyone at Hogwarts. Hermione must be wondering what he was doing here and not with Tonks.

"I'm afraid that I never felt for Tonks what she obviously felt for me. The reasons I gave that night at Hogwarts were still valid, but I didn't want to embarrass her in front of everyone there." Tonks had still pursued him even though he had told her gently, but firmly, that he simply did not feel that way for her. He wished that he did. He felt that he would always be alone.

Hermione nodded at his explanation. There wouldn't be any reason to stay with someone with whom he couldn't return their feelings. "That's understandable, and incredibly kind of you." She gave him a shaky smile.

Remus thought he could ask a question of his own, that he told himself was merely curiosity, and not the need to know her romantic inclinations. "Why are you here instead of at the Burrow?"

Hermione's brow furrowed. "Oh you mean with Ron?"

Remus nodded. "Surely the boy returns your affections, even though he can be quite…"

"Daft sometimes?" She asked with a small chuckle. She stared at her tea for a long moment. "I thought that Ron and I were inevitable. It just seemed natural, that maybe when this is all over that we would give it a go. Lately though, I find myself wondering if I really do feel for him the way I thought I did. If maybe what I was feeling was just a crush that expanded into what I thought I should feel, what everyone _knew _was going to happen."

"But how do you feel about it?"

Hermione sighed to herself. It felt weird voicing aloud the concerns that she'd kept in her head, but had been increasing in frequency over the past few days. If she was so in love with Ron, then why was she so attracted to Remus?

"We don't have anything in common. We bicker and fight all the time, and I don't know if what I want for my life is what he wants me to do. I care for him, but lately I've been thinking that it's more as a friend than as a…"

"Lover?" Remus supplied.

Hermione nodded as she blushed at the word coming from his lips. Just sitting this close to Remus had all her senses on high alert and she was hoping that by sitting next to him on the couch, their thighs would brush each others.

Remus wasn't surprised that she wasn't sure in her affections for Ron. He didn't seem the type of boy to hold her interests for very long. He was a boy of seventeen and he was interested in the type of things a boy his age would be interested in, and it didn't stun him that Hermione seemed to want someone with more depth. He pushed down his own small sliver of hope and gave Hermione a small smile. She really was quite beautiful when she blushed.


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: All recognizable characters belong to J.K. Rowling and Co.

A.N.: Thank you guys so much for your reviews. You guys are awesome. We're getting close now to when they finally break Sirius out, so happy reading!

Chapter 5

Remus watched Ariel's reaction to the map they had showed her of the what they knew of the Ministry. Her face remained completely blank as she looked at it, and he was reminded again that she was much older than she looked. She had become incredibly adept at hiding her emotions in that time.

"We're going to need more people. It's also going to be a problem getting me in there. I'm sure they have wards set up against vampires."

Remus nodded. "We could try transfiguring you into something else."

Ariel nodded at him. "I could try my Animagus form."

Remus's eyebrows shot up to the top of his forehead. "You're an Animagus?"

Ariel nodded. "It was the reason I was chosen. Out of all of my classmates, I was the only one."

"They wanted to see if it would transfer," Hermione stated.

"Yes, and it worked. I retained my ability." Ariel looked back and forth between the two of them. "Now I suggest we bring at least a few more people."

Remus nodded. He'd had the same thought. It wasn't really getting in that would be the problem. It was getting back out again after they had completed their mission. They were sure to trip all kinds of safeguards and alarms while going in that would alert Ministry personnel that there were intruders inside the Ministry. They would without a doubt make it in. Several Order sources had said that the Ministry had been infiltrated by Voldemort's followers, and he was certain that key members around the Minister himself were under the Imperious curse.

"We could get Fred and George. They were rather good while we were in the DA," Hermione said thoughtfully as she looked back and forth between the two of them.

Ariel raised an eyebrow in question.

"The Weasley twins," Hermione clarified. "They own Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes."

"The joke shop?" Ariel asked.

Hermione nodded. "They're really quite brilliant, even if I don't approve of their choice of career."

"What's the DA?" she asked again.

"Dumbledore's Army. It was a DADA group we formed in fifth year. We had that awful woman Umbridge as our DADA professor and she wouldn't let us do any spells in class. So we formed a group and Harry taught us real spells."

Ariel nodded, her eyes filled with mirth. "It seems Miss Granger, that you have a penchant for breaking the rules."

Remus laughed out loud. Hermione was the last person he would say liked breaking the rules.

Hermione huffed out loud. "Only when there is need of it."

Ariel gave a very small smile.

"So should you contact these boys?"

Hermione gave a nod, and went to the floo to give them a call.

Ariel turned her penetrating gaze on Remus. "You've chosen your mate very wisely. You're well suited."

Remus's eyebrows nearly went up into his hair. "M-mate?"

"Of course. You're scent is all over her."

"My scent?"

"You didn't know you'd marked her?"

Remus shook his head avidly.

She stared at him for a few seconds. "You do know of werewolf mating habits don't you?"

"A little," Remus conceded. He'd read a book or two on the subject a long time ago. He hadn't liked the idea that he would tie himself to someone that might not even want him.

"You've chosen her," Ariel said. "It's starting."

Remus shook his head vigorously. "She's to young."

Ariel snorted in an uncharacteristic show of emotion. "She is incredibly intelligent and driven. She would never be happy with someone her own age." She stopped to study him for a minute. "There is no way to stop it once it's started."

"There has to be a way," Remus said pleadingly. There was no way he was going to tie himself to someone as beautiful and young as Hermione. She deserved far better than he could ever give her. He refused to believe that he could tie himself to her forever.

She didn't say anything and stood. "I have to go out for a while. I will bring a book from my collection for you all on werewolf mating habits." She didn't go anywhere merely looked down at him. "Perhaps you should think of everything she would be gaining, not what she would be losing. You make a good match. Have no doubt that she is attracted to you. I will be back."

Remus didn't watch her leave, merely stared at his hands.

Hermione came back in. "Hey Fred, George, and Charlie will be here soon. Charlie was back from Romania and the twins thought he might help."

Remus merely nodded, mumbled that he was going to his room and let her with her brow furrowed at him in confusion.

Remus heard the knock at his door and he heaved a sigh and went to open it. Ariel stood on the other side. Remus didn't know how long he'd been sitting in his room on the edge of his bed, trying to figure out a way around what he was doing to Hermione. He tried to recall every word he'd read on werewolf mating. It had been an old obscure book that he'd found in the Hogwarts library. He could barely wrap his head around the fact that he had a mate to begin with.

The werewolf could mate with another werewolf or a human. It was brought on by attraction and compatibility. It was mostly a subconscious decision to mate. The werewolf put out pheromones that marked their chosen mate. That was only the beginning, and he didn't remember much after that.

"Here's your book," she said holding it out to him. "Don't be so hard on yourself."

"How can I not?" He asked self depreciatingly. "I could lock a beautiful young woman to old tired werewolf for the rest of her life. She hasn't even finished her last year at Hogwarts."

"She's of age," Ariel said. "And like I said, she would never be happy with someone her own age. So maybe you should talk to her about it. And she IS attracted to you. I can smell it, and I'm sure you can too, if you would get your head out of your ass." Ariel turned on her heel and walked away. "Oh and the Weasley boys should be here in a few minutes."

She left Remus with a lot to think about as she made her way down to the library, and Hermione.

"Is Remus okay?" Hermione asked her.

Ariel looked like she wanted to smile. "Maybe you should go ask him yourself."

Hermione gave her a funny look and shut her book, standing up. She started to walk out when Ariel put a hand on her arm. "You two make a good couple."

Hermione felt herself blush. "But we're n-not together."

"You should be. Don't let anything get in the way."

Hermione nodded to her, wondering what she meant by her words before making her way out of the library and up the stairs. The three Weasley boys would be here soon and she was sure he would want to be there to help her explain what they had found. She hoped that between the six of them, they would be able to get Sirius out of the veil and back to Grimmauld Place.

Hermione knocked on Remus's door, and waited for him to reply before opening it. He was sitting on the edge of the bed with a book in his lap, one hand running through his sandy blonde hair.

"Remus, the twins and Charlie will be here soon," she said.

Remus nodded to her. "I'll be down in just a minute."

She looked at him quizzically for a moment before nodding and turned and left. She didn't want to push him. If he wanted to talk about it he knew where to find her.

Remus heaved a huge sigh of relief before looking down at the page in front of him. Soon he would start to feel possessive of her, and a hunger that wouldn't be assuaged until he claimed her. He would be drawn to her. He would be able to put it off for a few days after the possessive feelings started, but not more than a week. He just hoped that they had Sirius back by then, and settled in. Then he would be able to get as far away from Hermione as he possibly could.

Remus heaved a sigh. He would suffer without her, but it was better than tying her to him. She was much too young, much too innocent for him. She was only seventeen, for Merlin's sake! He was twenty years her senior, and a bloody werewolf. If he mated her, she would have trouble finding a job with all the anti- werewolf legislation out there. The Ministry had never been kind to half-breeds. She had a bright future ahead of her and he wouldn't ruin it by tying himself to her. Mates were for life.

Hopefully they could carry out this plan soon. The sooner he was away from Hermione the better.

Remus made his way down to the sitting room, just as George was stepping out of the floo. Charlie and Fred were already standing in the room.

"Hermione!" The twins said together and went to give her a hug one on each side.

Remus felt a growl start in his throat, but he quickly swallowed it. He looked over to see Ariel standing in the doorway, an eyebrow raised at him. Apparently she'd heard it.

Hermione laughed at the twins antics and gave Charlie a little wave since she knew him the least out of all the Weasleys. "Guys this is Ariel," she said pointing to the doorway.

Ariel gave a nod from where she was leaning up against the jam. Charlie stepped back a step. "Hermione you do know-"

"Yes I know she's a vampire, and no she hasn't tried to eat either of us since she came in."

Charlie kept a wary eye on her as everyone took a seat. "What is this about?" Charlie asked.

Hermione looked at Remus and he gestured for her to continue. Most of it was her research anyway. She had been the one to find everything about the veil.

"We think we've found a way to bring Sirius back," Hermione said boldly.

The twin's eyebrows went up and they opened their mouths, but Hermione shut them up with a wave of her hand. She explained to them the veil and how Ariel might be able to retrieve Sirius and their need to destroy the veil as soon as Ariel was secure with Sirius beyond the veil.

"Why do you need us?" Charlie asked plainly.

"We don't know what kind of security measures the Ministry has now," Remus cut it. "The Order is also convinced that the Ministry has been completely infiltrated by Voldemort's ranks. We don't know who would come to investigate our break-in. It's not getting in we're worried about, it's getting out with Sirius intact."

"We're in," Fred and George said simultaneously.

Charlie gave a side long glance at Ariel, "I don't trust her."

Ariel raised a perfectly sculpted brow. "I haven't eaten you yet."

"You might," Charlie said with a hard voice.

"Do you want me to take a blood oath?" She asked seriously.

"Yes."

"A what?" Hermione asked, shocked. "Charlie this isn't necessary. She's been here while we were sleeping and could have killed us at any time."

"How do you know she isn't working for Voldemort?" He asked.

"We went to her. Charlie this is ridiculous. What is a blood oath?" Hermione could feel everything spiral out of control as she looked back and forth between Charlie and Ariel who were staring at each other in suspicion.

Suddenly Ariel took her leather jacket off and yanked up the sleeve of her long sleeve black shirt. "It's okay Hermione. I accept." She opened her mouth and her fang elongated and before Hermione could say anything she ripped her wrist open in a big gaping wound. She got up and walked over to Charlie, grabbing his hand and letting the dripping blood pour into it.

"I swear to cause no harm to you, your family, and the others in this house. By my blood and my life."

Swirling red energy seemed to glow around her for a second before fading.

Remus stared dumbstruck at Ariel. She had taken a blood oath. It was the equivalent of an Unbreakable Vow in the wizarding world. The fact that Charlie had known about a blood oath gave him pause. He'd only read about them in a few obscure texts he'd managed to read over the years.

Ariel licked the wound on her wrist and went to sit down, her tongue bathing it, and licking up the remaining blood. Charlie was staring at her in slight wonder.

Fred and George looked slightly dumbfounded as they looked back and forth between the two.

Hermione glared at Charlie for a moment before taking a deep breath. They had to form a plan, so she would let her questions wait until later.

"Getting into the Ministry won't be a problem. It's getting back out, because we don't know who it is that will come to investigate the break-in. So Ariel you will transform into your Animagus form while we get inside. I suggest we use the Visitor's entrance again. It let us in last time we went there for a rescue mission. Once we get to the Department of Mysteries we'll get into the Death Chamber as quickly as possible. Ariel, you go in after Sirius."

Ariel nodded. "I don't know how long it will take me, or how time goes on the other side. Since I am technically dead, I should be able to walk in and out, but I am not making any promises. Give me no more than two hours. If I do not return, you must consider me lost and destroy the arch."

Remus took a deep breath. They'd come so far and it all hung on Ariel. He wanted to trust her, put his faith in her, but he didn't know if he could. Sirus's life hung in the balance. They were so close.

"I will do my best to save him Remus," Ariel said. Remus turned his eyes to her. She had a sad look on her face. "What does he look like? I do not know if there are more people in there. He will be my first priority."

Remus described Sirius to her. She nodded. "Now the question is when? We have the best plan we can get."

"Tomorrow night?" Hermione asked.

"Midnight," Ariel confirmed. "Give the stragglers at the Ministry time to leave. Don't want to be caught by some poor sap leaving late."

They adjourned after deciding to meet at Grimmauld at eleven. She sighed as the twins went through the floo to the Burrow, hopefully not letting anyone know where it was they went. Hermione didn't want anyone to know anything yet. Not until they had Sirius safe within his own house. Hermione went to the cupboard to pull out as many potions as they had. They had blood replenishing and Skele-gro as well as dreamless sleeping draughts. A few more complex potions to help with some of the more common darker curses. Hermione knew quite a few healing spells, and she was sure Remus did as well. She was sure that they would be able to care for Sirius adequately.

Hermione made her way back up the stairs and didn't stop until she was in front of Sirius's door. She took a deep breath and opened it, only to find Remus already in there. She thought he'd returned to his room. He was sitting on the bed looking at what Hermione was sure was a picture. He had the saddest look on his face.

Hermione didn't say anything, merely went to sit beside him, hoping that her presence was enough to comfort him.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Remus paced the library, his hands vibrating by his side as he waiting for everyone to get there.

Everything came down to tonight. In twenty minutes the twins would be flooing in with Charlie, and they would make their way to the Ministry. Everything came down to Ariel and that bloody arch. He had barely slept the night before. Hermione had woke this morning to find him doing exactly as he was now. She'd finally handed him a sleeping potion and pointed to the staircase.

He chuckled a little at her bossy attitude. She really was a good choice for a mate.

Remus nearly slapped himself. He couldn't think like that. As soon as they saved Sirius he had to get away from her. He couldn't be thinking of her as his mate. Because then he'd never let her go.

The night before when she'd come into Sirius's room, she'd known that there wasn't anything to say. She simply sat beside him, and when it was time they tidied Sirius's room up quietly, hoping that their efforts wouldn't be in vain. Remus's didn't know what he would do if they failed. He could barely hope that everything would turn out the way it was suppose to. He wanted nothing more than to bring Sirius home. He'd barely had him back for a few years when he lost him again.

Remus tried his best not to think about what he would have to do to stay away from Hermione. He could tell that he was starting to become attached to her, and it wasn't just the wolf. It was everything about her. She was intelligent, beautiful, passionate about what she believed in. She was everything he'd ever wanted, and now the wolf inside him wanted to mark her.

Soon though, he would have Sirius back. Sirius would be able to help him. Soon he also knew that Hermione would be leaving with Ron and Harry to go on the mission Dumbledore left for them. Maybe with Sirius back he would confide in them what they had to do. He and Sirius could help.

Remus shook his head. He shouldn't be thinking of this, he couldn't be thinking of this. He should be thinking of ways to stay away, not ways in which they would be together.

Remus sat down on the chair in the corner and put his face in his hands. He was only sitting for a minute when he heard the door open. Hermione kneeled in front of him and put her hands on his knees.

"Are you ready?"

Remus nodded, not able to say anything. He wanted so much to kiss her, just to see what it would be like. He knew that the Ministry had fallen, or was close to it, and there would be Voldemort supporters at the Ministry at the least, if not Death Eaters. He might not make it out. He refused to think that anything could happen to Hermione. He wouldn't let anything happen to her. His hand reached up of it's own volition and held her cheek.

Hermione felt like she couldn't breath as she leaned into the callused hand that was on her face. She knew he wanted to kiss her. She wanted him to. She wanted him to touch her. Her eyes fluttered closed as her hand reached up to hold his hand against her face.

"Hermione," Remus breathed out.

Hermione opened her eyes. He said her name like a prayer.

Hermione couldn't stand it any longer. She leaned up and pressed her lips to his.

Remus was shocked for a moment, but gave in to the feel of his mate's lips against his. He ran his tongue along the seem of her lips, begging entrance. She opened for him, and he explored her mouth with his tongue. She tasted even sweeter than she smelled. Remus growled low in his throat and hauled her up off the floor and into his lap. She gasped in surprise and Remus took the opportunity to attack her mouth again.

They broke apart after a couple minutes, both breathing hard. Remus put his forehead against hers and tried to get a hold of his body. He wanted nothing more than to lay her out on the library floor, strip her clothes off, and lose himself in her.

"There's something I have to tell you," Remus said.

Hermione opened her eyes to stare into his amber ones. She always thought his eyes were so beautiful, even though the amber color denoted his werewolf status.

"How much do you know about werewolf mating habits?"

Hermione started talking without thinking. "I know that they subconsciously choose their mates. They start to mark them with their scent…" Hermione and sat back a little to look into his face. "You've marked your mate."

Remus nodded. "I'm sorry Hermione. Once this is over, I'll get as far away from you as I can."

"No!" Hermione nearly shouted. That would be disastrous. "You could die!"

Remus ran a hand through her hair, loving the feel of it on his fingers. He twined a curl around his finger, wondering at the softness of it. "I'll not see you tied to someone such as me, Hermione."

Hermione grabbed each side of his face. "And I'll not let anything happen to you. I care for you, Remus. You are a good man. I could do much worse for a mate." Hermione actually felt a little flattered that he would choose her as a mate. Werewolves only rarely mated anymore. Since it was a lifetime commitment, with no way out, the practice had gone out of style.

Remus sighed. He would have to talk some sense into her when this mission was over. "What did you come up here for?"

"It's almost time. And don't think you can get out of talking about this with me, Remus Lupin. I won't let you."

Remus let out a small chuckle. "No, I suppose you won't."

Hermione got up and held her hand out to him. Remus smiled at her and took it. Hermione led him out of the library to the sitting room, where everyone was waiting for them. Hermione didn't let go of his hand.

Ariel raised an eyebrow at him, and smirked.

Remus felt his face get hot, but didn't move to let Hermione's hand go. It felt to good in his. It just fit.

"So are we ready?" Charlie asked. "It's time."

Hermione nodded and gestured to the bag she had stashed in the corner. "Could you grab that George?"

She had made a bag filled with all the healing potions she could find left at Grimmauld, along with bandages. She wanted to be prepared for anything. She wasn't sure what hex had hit Sirius and she wanted to make sure he stayed with them.

George pulled the small bag over his shoulders. "What is it, Granger?"

"Healing potions," she said simply. "We'll have to go in the visitor's entrance. We'll just have to all cram in there and get in. Ariel, you transform before we get in. We'll head straight to the Department of Mysteries. Once we get in the revolving room, we don't go in any room until we find the one with the arch. Ariel will go in." She turned to Ariel. "We'll give you as much time as we can. I don't think we will be able to get a message to you, but go as fast as you can."

Ariel nodded. "Got it." She quickly and seamlessly transformed into a rather large collie.

Remus smiled down at his bossy witch and contemplated stealing another kiss. He looked up to see Charlie giving him a look he couldn't decipher. He sighed to himself. He knew that if he ever had a relationship with Hermione not that many people would approve.

Remus shook his head slightly as they made their way outside so they could apparate in pairs, Charlie taking Ariel with him. The house was being watched so they had to stay on the stoop. Here he was already thinking of having a relationship with Hermione, when not a half hour earlier he was contemplating running away from her. He did know that if anyone could put up with a werewolf mate it would be his bossy little Gryffindor. She was nothing if not stubborn.

Hermione and Remus were the last to apparate. He held her close as he disillusioned them both before apparating them to the visitor's entrance to the Ministry. He couldn't see the others, but he knew they were there. If he concentrated he could see the subtle shift in the air that meant a disillusioned person was moving. They all made their way to the phone box and stuffed inside. Charlie lifted the phone and pushed the appropriate buttons. Remus was pushed up against Hermione and he could feel one of the twins up against his back.

Breathing became a problem for Hermione as they made their way down into the Ministry. When the phone box stopped they all almost fell out and Hermione took a deep breath of air. "Everyone here?"

There were appropriate noises and a small whimper that meant that Ariel was with them. "Alright, does everyone know where to go to start with?"

Everyone breathed a quick yes and they started out. Hermione kept a hold of Remus's hand as they made their way across the atrium. She hoped they could at least get to the Department of Mysteries without being accosted.

They used the lift to make it down to the appropriate floor without saying a word. They all seemed to be holding their breaths that they wouldn't be caught yet. Even Fred and George were quiet, and that more than anything told Hermione how serious this was. The Ministry was close to being in Voldemort's hands and Death Eaters now worked here.

Hermione took a deep breath as the lift opened. Remus held her back as what she thought was Charlie poked his head out to make sure that the coast was clear. Hermione breathed a sigh of relief as he said a quick 'clear' to everyone. They stepped out and made their way down the hallway to the door for the Department of Mysteries. Hermione swallowed and opened it, and stepping in before Remus could stop her. She didn't see anyone so she stepped in fully and looked around in the revolving room.

This is where it got interesting.

Hermione stopped the disillusionment on herself when the door was shut. "Okay, everyone stay in the center of the room." Hermione made an X on the first door just as she did last time and opened the door. It was the prophecy room. She shut it and waited for the room to turn. When it stopped Charlie opened the next door after making the same mark on the outside of the door. He peeked in and stepped back. "Nothing."

Hermione sighed and Remus went to the next door after the room had started to spin. He opened it and looked in, then flung the door hard enough to open it the rest of the way. In the center of the room was the arch, the veil billowing as if blown by a nonexistent wind.

"This is it everyone," Hermione said softly. She started to step into the room.

"Wait!" Fred shouted. "Quiet!"

Everyone held their breath. Hermione could hear shouts and footsteps just beyond the door. "Everyone in!"

Everyone rushed into the room and shut the door behind them. Charlie set up a series of complicated wards on the door and the walls around it. "That should keep them occupied for a while."

Hermione nodded to him and turned to Ariel who had turned back into her regular form when they'd shut the door. "It's all up to you now."

Ariel nodded without saying anything and walked up to the arch. Taking a deep breath, she walked through it.

Hermione watched her disappear. "Now we wait."

* * *

Ariel opened her eyes as she entered the veil. She felt weightless, yet like there was a great pressure on her chest. Her eyes were useless as she could see nothing but fog. She turned, and she could see the other side of the arch. Ariel knew she wouldn't be able to find her way back unless she did something. Ariel took a knife out of her pocket and cut her palm allowing the blood to flow onto what she thought was the floor. It dropped anyway. She took a deep breath and smelt the coppery scent of her blood. She let the blood flow until the wound closed up. Then she reseated her knife and started to reach out with her other senses. She didn't know what she would find in here. It could be anything. She didn't know how many bodies would be in here with Sirius.

She started to walk, the weird feeling of being weightless and yet standing still. She felt as if she weren't using any of her muscles to move around.

Ariel was glad she didn't have to actually breath since the weight was still on her chest. It was still disconcerting to know that she wouldn't be able to draw a very deep breath had she wanted to. She kept walking, making sure each step that she could still breath enough to smell her blood. It was a sharp tang in her nose every time she breathed.

Ariel felt something to her left and followed it. The fog was denser and Ariel was sure that she wouldn't be able to see her hand. She walked for several minutes before she came upon what she was sure was a dais. At least that's what it felt like with her hands. She wondered how she was suppose to tell whether or not she would be able to tell who it was exactly.

She felt around the dais and could tell that it was made out of marble. She wondered at how this was all created, but figured she could go over it later. Now was not the time for an inner intellectual debate.

Ariel nearly gasped as she felt wondering on the side. It was words. Ariel felt her way along it. It was in the ancient vampire language. Ariel was glad she studied it as this ancient form of their language as it wasn't widely used. She felt the wording.

_Sacrifices must be made. _

Ariel took out her knife and took another deep breath.

* * *

Hermione flinched a little as the door banged again and a small pieces of marble flew away. They were all standing with their backs to the arch, their wands at the ready. Hermione glanced at Remus who had a blank look on his face as he waited for the door to open. Hermione let herself study him for a moment. He really was quite handsome, and Hermione was flattered that he was attracted to her at all. She knew that she would have to fight him if she wanted to be with him, but she was never a witch to back down from something she believed in. Hermione knew that if nothing else, she believed in Remus. She trusted him whole-heartedly. She wasn't sure what else she felt for him, but she was certain she wanted to explore it.

Remus took another deep breath and shot a quick look to Hermione who tried to give him a smile, but it came out as more of a grimace. He dreaded the conversation they would have when they got back to Grimmauld. _If they got back. _

Remus shook his head a little, trying to dispel the thought. They would make it out of here. Ariel had only been in the arch for a little over twenty minutes. There was no reason for them to worry quite yet. They had no idea what she would have to do in there, or what she would encounter. Remus had to brace himself for the battle at hand. Hopefully there were only a few Aurors on the other side. They had agreed that they would do their best to stun or disarm only since the wizards on the other side could be merely doing their job.

Another bang sounded and Remus saw Hermione flinch. They were getting through the wards on the doors. Charlie had learned a few things from Bill, but he still wasn't a curse breaker. They were strong arming their way through them, which led to all the damage on the door. Remus hoped Ariel didn't take to long.

* * *

Ariel hissed as she cut her hand again. She had to sacrifice to get Sirius through. None of their theories had ever conjectured this outcome, but Ariel knew it wasn't out of the realm of possibility. They had created serious magic when the veil was born. Apparently they hadn't know just what it was they were creating. The veil had taken on a life of it's own, and it demanded that to take someone out she had to give something of herself.

The fog had lifted enough that she could tell that she was at the right platform. It made sense since he was the last person to fall through. Ariel knew there were other people trapped in here, but she didn't have time to save them all. A pang went through her that they would be lost forever once the veil was destroyed, but there was nothing she could do for them. She was only one vampire and she had a feeling that she would be incredibly weak when she was finally able to get Sirius out of here.

She had already tried to move him, using magic and her hands, but he wouldn't budge from the platform. He was incredibly pale, but he looked otherwise unharmed. He wasn't breathing, but she had a feeling that he would start as soon as she got him on the other side. She hoped she right. She didn't want Remus to go through seeing his friend's dead body. She'd only known him for a mere two days, but no one should have to go through that. She knew that he had seen his friend fall through in the first place, so she didn't want to add to it. She had lost many good friends in the near century she'd been alive.

Ariel pushed the memories down and squeezed the wound in her hand. Since her heart didn't beat, she didn't bleed like witches and wizards who had a beating heart. It didn't pump out so much as flow slowly. She pushed down a wave of dizziness and grabbed onto Sirius again. She was able to lift him slowly.

Ariel took a deep breath and threw him over her shoulder. It was the easiest way to carry him, and she was incredibly weak from the blood she had sacrificed. She turned around and went to head back for the exit, but she was turned around. She stopped and took a deliberate deep breath, the same weight pressing down on her chest, but she didn't let it stop her. She breathed through her nose trying to get the smell of her blood to guide her, but all she could smell was the blood she had just shed.

Ariel growled low in her throat. The veil wasn't going to let them go without a fight.

* * *

A.N.: Sorry for the terribly long wait guys, things have been way crazy. And sorry for the cliffie. I couldn't resist. The next chapter is done, it just needs to be edited, so it won't be very long. Thank you guys for your incredible reviews and to everyone who alerted and faved this story. You guys are the best.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Ariel had a feeling the veil knew how she had planned to get out, so it had made her sacrifice be blood. The dais had said nothing about blood, Ariel had just known that was what the veil had demanded. Ariel nearly hit herself for her stupidity. Her sense of smell of limited in the confines of the veil, so she couldn't differentiate between the blood. All her nose was picking up was the blood she had just shed. She needed to get away from it. Ariel knew that she had walked straight and come up on the marble where Sirius was laying at a left angle, so she started walking that way, hoping to be able to smell the older blood that she had just left.

Ariel kept walking. She had to try and get out of here the best she could. She kept going in what she thought was the general direction she had come from. She stumbled a little, but kept going. The blood loss was started to get to her, even in the weird weightless environment she was in. She knew that as soon as she got on the other side of the archway she knew he muscles would give out. Vampires were stronger than living witches and wizards, but even they had their limits.

"Stupid fucking veil," Ariel muttered under her breath.

* * *

_"Stupefy!" _

_"Protego!"_

Remus threw another stunner at the Aurors who had broken through the door and looked around with Hermione after he saw it had hit it's target. She was locked in a duel with a man she didn't recognize, and Remus could see that she was getting tired. Sweat was running down her face and her wild hair looked even more wild that usual. Remus shot a jinx at the Auror she was fighting and did his best to make sure everyone in the room was holding their own. Fred and George were taking on an older Auror that Remus recognized, but couldn't remember his name. They were laughing and throwing hexes at the Auror, dodging ones thrown at them in perfect sync.

As far as Remus could tell they hadn't sent any Death Eaters, but they needed to hurry up before word got to any sympathizers. They didn't want Voldemort finding out and sending anyone to figure out what members of the Order were up to. They were all easily recognized, and Voldemort would surely figure out what they were after as soon as he knew what part of the Ministry they were in.

Remus turned to stare at the veil at what had to be the exactly right time. Ariel came stumbling out with a body over her shoulder. Remus hurried to stand in front of her, so he could protect her and their precious cargo.

"Lupin," Ariel said from behind him in a strained voice. "Get everyone out of here. I have to destroy the veil."

Remus turned and picked up the heavy scent of blood from her. His face twisted at the smell. Vampire blood always had a weird tinge about it.

"The veil demanded a sacrifice," she said as she saw his face.

Remus nodded and started firing off stunners at a rapid rate at the Aurors the others were fighting. He saw Charlie's go down who turned to nod at him and then help Fred and George with theirs. Hermione was holding her arm to her side and trying to fight off the man she was dueling. Remus felt the growl well up in his throat as he realized she was hurt. He sent off a particularly hard disarming spell at the man, and felt a small well of satisfaction rise within him as he saw the man was blasted off his feet to hit the back wall. He was knocked unconscious and Hermione dropped her wand arm and hurried towards Ariel.

Ariel's face seemed to get more strained as Hermione got nearer to them. He saw the small gash on her arm, and suddenly realized what was happening. Ariel was fighting her nature.

He hurried to get between Ariel and Hermione, holding her back slightly. Ariel had been a great help to them, retrieving Sirius, but he didn't trust her near his mate when she was in the throws of blood lust.

"I'm okay Lupin," Ariel said. "Take him."

Remus held his arms out, and felt his breath catch as Sirius was dumped into his arms. Remus pushed down the well of emotion at seeing his friend again and hurried them away from the veil so that Ariel could work her magic.

One of the twins finally took down the last Auror and everything seemed eerily quiet for a moment. Hermione immediately started flicking her wand at Sirius, several colors showing in the air above him.

"He's not breathing well, and he has some internal bleeding, probably due to the curse that Bellatrix threw at him before he fell."

George came over quickly with the bag Hermione had instructed him to grab before they left and Hermione took it gratefully. She opened it and pulled out several potions, the first one she tipped into her hands and rubbed some of it underneath Sirius's nose. She pulled another out.

"Open his mouth," she instructed George.

Remus watched as George opened the mouth of the man he was holding, and Hermione slowly poured a potion down it, massaging his throat so he would swallow.

Remus felt tears prick at his eyes as he watched Sirius take a deep breath. His eyes didn't open, but he was definitely alive.

"You have to get out of here," Ariel said from behind them. "I don't know what's going to happen once I say the spells."

"I'm staying," Charlie said immediately.

Ariel seemed to study him for a minute, then nodded. "Get your friend back to the house. I'll come when this is done." She turned back to the veil and seemed to study the structure of it for a minute.

Remus gestured to the door. "Let's get out of here."

Fred and George seemed to say something to Charlie with their eyes before they turned and led the way out of the room.

They met two more Aurors on the way out, but they were quickly dispatched by Fred and George and a few of their more serious products. Remus would thank them later for having the mind to bring them. They made it out to the street where they disapparated back to Grimmauld. Hermione hurriedly led them up to Sirius's room where they laid him out on the bed.

Hermione did another series of spells that Remus didn't pay much attention to. He was never very good at healing spells besides the various regular healing charms.

Remus felt tears enter his eyes again, and he did nothing to stop them from falling down his cheeks as he kept his eyes on his friend.

"I don't think we should wake him just yet," Hermione said softly. "The internal bleeding has stopped, but we need to give him time to heal. I don't want him up and about yet, and if we wake him up I don't think we'll be able to keep him in bed."

Remus hardily agreed with her, but he was loath to leave his friend.

Hermione put her hand on his arm. "Stay with him. I'll go check on the twins before we send them back to the Burrow. I'm not sure what they told Mrs. Weasley, but I'd rather she not find out anything until Sirius is up and around."

Remus nodded gratefully to her. "Make sure you take care of your arm."

She smiled at him and pulled a potion out of her bag and swallowed it before heading out of the room, her wand tucked behind her ear.

Hermione made her way down to the sitting room to see Fred and George sitting exhaustedly in the chairs. Fred had a rather large scratch running down one arm, and George looked to be developing bruises on parts of his face.

"Fred," Hermione said, "let me see your arm."

"How's he doing?" Fred asked anxiously.

"Better," Hermione said as she got a closer look at his scratch. It was deeper than initially thought, but seemed to have stopped bleeding for the most part. "I've stopped the internal bleeding, and checked his vitals. He just needs some rest."

Hermione cleaned the wound and muttered a healing charm along the scratch and watched as it closed up, the flesh knitting back together. Hermione had read up on healing charms last year, knowing that eventually she would need them at some point during the war. Since Harry and Ron could never be counted on to think ahead, Hermione knew it would fall to her to heal any wounds they were likely to get. Hermione was thankful she'd read up on it now, and that her grasp of the theory really did help in the practical application.

Hermione pulled some bruise healing paste out of her bag and went over to George. "Anything else that I can't see?"

George didn't even joke with her as he shook his head. She opened the bottle and rubbed it on his face carefully, letting it seep through his skin.

"So Granger," Fred said conversationally. "What's going on with you and Lupin?"

Hermione sighed, knowing that the questions wouldn't wait forever. "I'm not sure exactly," she conceded to them.

The twins shared a look she couldn't identify. She looked back and forth between the two, wondering what it was that had passed between them. The two had always been able to communicate without words, and it irritated Hermione.

"We know that our brother was really never good enough for you," George started out.

"He's to much of an immature prat," Fred completed.

"Lupin is older."

"More your style."

"We just wanted you to know we're behind you," George finished.

Hermione felt an unfettered wave of affection for the twins. For all their jokes, pranks, and tricks, they were amazingly intelligent, and she wasn't surprised they had figured out in the space of two evenings that there was something growing between Remus and herself. She felt tears fill her eyes as she looked at the two, and knew that everyone else wouldn't be so understanding.

"Thank you," Hermione said softly blinking her eyes, trying to stop the flood of tears from rolling down her face.

George stood up and gave her a hug and Hermione held on. Fred came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her from the other side.

Before Hermione could let go the front door banged open and Hermione heard the jinx that Moody had set up go off. Hermione jumped in surprise, and turned to see who it was that had entered the house. She heard the deep tone of Kingsley Shacklebolt's voice and waited for him to come in. He entered the sitting room in quite a flurry, Tonks on his heels.

"The Ministry has been broken into," Kingsley stated.

Tonks, for all her clumsiness, was really quite observant. Her eyes took note of the potion vials sitting on the small table and the disheveled appearance of the other three. "It was you."

Hermione stole a quick glance at the twins, and noticed their faces were completely stoic. They were waiting for her to confirm or deny their involvement in the night's events. Hermione sighed, knowing that they wouldn't be able to keep Sirius's return a secret for much longer.

"If you'll come with me, I'll show you exactly what we were doing," Hermione said. "You must keep quiet though, I don't want you to disturb him."

Kingsley and Tonks looked confused, but nodded to her to show her they accepted.

Hermione led them up to Sirius's old room and knocked softly on the door. She stuck her head in so Kingsley and Tonks wouldn't be able to see quite yet. Remus was sitting in a chair next to the bed, looking at her expectantly. Sirius was still sleeping on the bed, his breaths even and low.

"Kingsley and Tonks are here. They heard about the break-in at the Ministry."

Remus nodded, but held his finger up to his lips to indicate that they needed to be quiet. Hermione nodded and repeated the gesture to the two Aurors before she let them in.

"Sweet Merlin," Kingsley breathed as he noticed the sleeping form on the bed.

"How?" Tonks choked out.

Remus smiled at the two of them and pointed to Hermione. "It was all her."

Hermione studied Tonks and remembered that Sirius was her cousin. "There was this book…"

Kingsley let out a small chuckle at her explanation. "Trust the bookworm to bring someone back from the dead."

"It wasn't me," Hermione said softly. She shared a look with Remus that showed concern. Ariel and Charlie hadn't made it back yet.

At that thought Fred showed up at the open door. "Ariel and Charlie have returned, although Ariel looks a little worse for wear."

"Ariel?" Kingsley asked.

"A friend," Remus said quietly.

"How is he doing?" Tonks asked quietly.

"Better," Remus said. "Hermione poured quite a few potions down his throat, and did some diagnostic spells. The internal bleeding has stopped, and now he just seems to be resting."

Tonks nodded, and gave Hermione a small watery smile.

"I need to go check on Charlie," Hermione said and gave Remus a quick look. She made her way downstairs, and saw that Kingsley was the only one that followed her. She pushed down a quick wave of jealousy that welled up within her at the knowledge that Tonks and Remus would be in the same room with each other.

Hermione pushed it down, telling herself that Remus had made it clear that he didn't feel for Tonks as she felt for them. She pushed down the small voice in her head that told her that Tonks was more worldly, and closer in age to Remus that she.

Hermione turned to Kingsley before they made it to the door to kitchen, where Hermione had heard all the voices. "Ariel is not your typical witch, but she is and can be a valuable ally, so I will have your word that you will not do anything to her. She has proven herself by helping us."

Hermione knew that a typical wizard would hex first and ask questions later when dealing with vampires. She wasn't taking any chances. Ariel had take a blood oath not to harm anyone under their roof, and she wouldn't be able to defend herself adequately if hexed.

Kingsley looked at her funny for a minute before nodded his head in acquiescence.

Hermione nodded to him and opened the door to the kitchen to see the twins, Charlie, and Ariel sitting around the table. Ariel looked exhausted. She was paler than normal, and she had her head laying on the table until she heard Kingsley behind her.

Kingsley recognized a vampire when he saw one, and immediately went for his wand before Fred, George, and Charlie, all stood up to shield Ariel.

"No," Charlie said, his voice deep and steady.

Kingsley studied the three Weasleys for a minute before nodding his head and putting his wand away. She was sure he realized he couldn't get through all the three of them. Hermione felt another deep rush of affection for the Weasley boys at their protection of Ariel.

"Do you have any Blood-Replenishing Potions?" Ariel asked wearily from her seat at the table.

Hermione wordlessly summoned her bag and pulled out two. She handed them to Ariel who drained them quickly. Hermione couldn't see any discernable difference, but Ariel seemed to look a little less exhausted.

"They help a little," Ariel said.

Hermione nodded and went to take a seat, looking Charlie over for wounds. He looked tired, but nothing more. Kingsley sat down beside her.

"How did all this start?" Kingsley asked.

Hermione looked from each of them and settled in to tell her story.

A.N.: I Hope everyone enjoyed this chapter. Thank you guys for your kind reviews. You guys are awesome.


	8. Chapter 8

A.N.: You guys are awesome, and I'm so glad you're enjoying the story. This chapter isn't as action packed as the last one, but I hope you enjoy it anyway. Just a few more chapters and we'll see Harry and Sirius reunited. Thank you guys!

Chapter 8

Remus stared at the bed before him. It had been three days since they had brought Sirius back from the Department of Mysteries and he still hadn't woken up. Hermione had kept telling him that although the potions she had given him had stopped the internal bleeding, he still needed time to heal himself, and that was best accomplished through rest. Remus couldn't help but worry about his long time friend though. He was also afraid for when he woke up and he had to tell him that he'd lost another year of his life, Dumbledore was dead, and Snape had turned traitor.

At least Harry was okay, Kingsley having given them a report that he had spied on the occupants of Number 4, Privet Drive just the day before.

Remus had barely left Sirius's room except to use the loo. Hermione brought him most of his meals, and even Ron had once. Remus wasn't quite sure about the events surrounding his finding out about Sirius's return, but he had a feeling it had something to do with the secret mission Dumbledore had given them. He had to admit to himself that he wasn't entirely comfortable with the young Weasley being around his Hermione. His possessive feelings hadn't stopped, had actually gotten worse since their return from the Department of Mysteries.

Remus put his face, in his hands, knowing that he couldn't put off his talk with Hermione much longer. He knew she was giving him space because of the state of his oldest friend, but he could tell that she was getting anxious to find out more about their connection. Remus had read the rest of the book Ariel had brought him, and it didn't look good for her if he didn't get away soon. He knew that Hermione wouldn't allow him to leave. She was as stubborn as everyone gave her credit for, if not more so. He had a feeling that she'd been talking more with Ariel too, and he knew that the vampire wouldn't sugar coat the truth for her. She was nothing if not incredibly blunt.

Kingsley had talked to him about her involvement, and while he hadn't been entirely comfortable with her presence, he had finally acquiesced. Charlie had even seemed to take a liking to her, spending more time with her at Grimmauld than at the Burrow with his family.

Mrs. Weasley and Arthur had stopped by and seen Sirius. Mrs. Weasley and Sirius had never quite gotten along, but she had shed a few tears for the return of Harry's godfather. He had a feeling that she was more interested in how it would bolster Harry's self esteem when he returned from the Dursley's, but he was grateful for her support nonetheless. She had taken to sending over home cooked meals from the Burrow, for which he was sure everyone that had taken to frequenting Grimmauld was thankful.

His mind came back around to Hermione and what he would say to her when he got up the guts to tell her that if he didn't leave soon, it would be to late. Every time she came to check on him, and her scent would wash over him, he could feel the wolf rising within him, urging him to take her, to make her his. It was bolstered by the coming full moon, and Remus knew that in the days before it, he would have to stay well away from her, lest he do something he would later regret.

It wasn't helped by the fact that at the moment, Hermione was alone in Grimmauld with him, Moody and Kingsley having left to do their Order duty.

Remus put his face in his hands and rubbed his fingertips along his scalp, messing his already messy hair. If he didn't stop the habit, his hair would soon look like Harry's.

"Merlin, Padfoot," Remus said in a soft voice. "I don't know what to do."

Remus had taken to talking to Sirius's sleeping form in the days since he had been retrieved from the veil. He didn't think Sirius could hear him, but it made him feel better to talk to him. Sirius had always known what to do when it came to women.

"She's so young, and I'm a bloody werewolf," Remus said quietly. "How can I tie her to me for the rest of my life?"

"Easy," Sirius croaked out from the bed.

Remus lifted his head so fast he was sure he'd get whiplash later, but he was to excited to notice.

"Sirius!"

Remus couldn't help but launch himself at the bed and wrap his friend in a hug that he was sure would make Sirius spit out snide remarks on any other occasions.

"Why are you hugging me? And why do I feel like the Hogwarts Express is trying to run its way through my skull?"

Remus laughed, his eyes noticeably shiny as he pulled back to look at his long time friend.

"God she did it," Remus whispered.

"Who did what?"

Remus got up from his chair and went over to the door and yelled for Hermione.

"Can you not scream? And why are you calling for Hermione? Where's Harry?"

Remus took a deep breath as he waited for Hermione. He could hear her footsteps running up the stairs and she made her entrance a moment later.

"Sirius!" She yelled and ran over to give him a hug.

"Can you not yell?"

Hermione laughed as she pulled a headache potion out of the bag she kept next to the door and handed to him. Sirius took the vial gratefully and downed it.

"What happened? I remember the Department of Mysteries," Sirius said, trailing off at the shared look between the two.

"Sirius," Remus said gently. "It's been a year since the Department of Mysteries."

Sirus's face got even more pale that it was. "What? Where's Harry? What happened?"

"Harry is fine," Remus said quickly. A little of the tension seemed to leave his body at that statement.

"Remus," Hermione said, turning to him. "Why don't you tell Sirius everything while I get him something to eat."

Remus nodded. They had been able to get some water down him while he was sleeping, but he needed something more substantial.

Remus sat down in the chair again as Sirius looked at him. "Is it just me or does she look a lot older?"

Remus nodded. "She's seventeen now Sirius. You've been…gone awhile."

Before Sirius could ask anymore questions, Remus launched into his telling of what had happened in the Department of Mysteries a year ago. He got up to what happened to Dumbledore on the Astronomy Tower when Hermione returned with a plate of Mrs. Weasley's reheated pot roast, and a glass of pumpkin juice.

"That stupid greasy bastard!" Sirius said, sitting up completely in bed and throwing off the blankets. He shoved away the plate of food that Hermione offered him. She looked like she wanted to argue with him, but she knew that he had just gotten the unfortunate news of Dumbledore's death and Snape's defection.

"I knew he couldn't be trusted," Sirius muttered angrily, "but no one would listen to me!"

Hermione sighed, knowing it would be hard to stop Sirius from going after Snape himself. Their long standing hatred of each other had reached even her ears, and she knew that Sirius wouldn't take Snape's betrayal sitting down.

"Sit down," Hermione said with a huff. "You can't go gallivanting off to try and kill Snape. Harry is going to need you when he returns from Privet Drive. As I'm sure the rest of the Order will tell you, Dumbledore left Harry, Ron and I with a mission. Harry has not divulged the information about the mission to anyone on Dumbledore's orders, but I'm sure he will want to reveal it to you. Now eat, you need your strength."

Sirius looked at her incredulously, and Remus couldn't help the bark of laughter that shot out of his mouth.

Sirius started to eat as Remus filled him in on Hermione's return to Grimmauld and her subsequent finding of the book in the Black family library, his finding of Ariel, their meeting with her, and their rescue of him from the veil.

Sirius looked thoughtful. "So a vampire carried me out of the veil?"

Hermione nodded. "She's actually nice, even if she is a little blunt."

Remus smirked a little. There wasn't any doubt in their minds anymore about Ariel. They had put a lot of trust in her, and she had come through for them.

Hermione grabbed Sirius's empty plate. "I'll let you two talk. Do you want me to bring anything up? Tea perhaps?"

Remus looked to Sirius who shook his head. Hermione smiled at him and squeezed his bicep in parting.

Remus watched her leave, his eyes lingering on the door for a few moments after she left. When he turned back around, Sirius was watching him with questioning eyes.

"So, Moony. What's going on between you and Granger?"

Remus felt his face flush a little as he looked at Sirius. He let out a long sigh and put his face in his hands.

Sirius let out a small chuckle. "It must be serious if you're acting like this."

Remus looked up and sighed long and loud. "I've marked her as my mate."

Sirius's eyes widened. "You've what?"

Remus nodded. "You remember that book I found at Hogwarts?"

Sirius nodded. He too, had read it. "Yes of course. You were so afraid that you would mate with someone that you wouldn't let any girls around you for months."

Remus nodded. "I've read a few things since then of course. I'd learned enough that I wasn't as scared about doing so. Werewolves mating has been out of practice for more than a century. I just didn't think of it, and then Hermione came here after she'd left her parents. We spent practically every second together for a few days and…it just kind of happened. Ariel told me she could smell the warning all over her."

"Well then I suppose congratulations are in order, old friend."

"No, Sirius! Don't you see? I can't do this to her! I'm twenty years older than her, not to mention a bloody werewolf!"

Sirius looked at Remus for a moment. "I know I've been gone for a while, but even you deserve some happiness, Remus. She's a grown woman now. It's her decision too. Don't take that away from her."

Remus studied his friend for a moment. If anyone could say anything about having decisions taken away from them, it was the man in front of him. He'd been locked in Azkaban for a crime he never committed, and when he finally escaped, confined to a house he hated, then thrown into the veil for a year he would never get back.

Remus felt badly for unloading this all on his friend as soon as he woke up.

"How's Harry?" Sirius asked.

"As well as can be expected, although if you want details you'll have to ask Hermione. She was with him at Hogwarts."

Sirius nodded and went to move from the bed, swinging his legs over. "I don't know what to do now."

"I suppose the best thing is to wait for Harry. The three of them have something planned. Something Dumbledore left for them, but they won't tell anyone. Hermione told me Dumbledore told Harry to share it with only her and Ron."

"I'll see if I can get it out of her," Sirius said standing up. He was clad in only the pajamas Remus had managed to put on him after they had returned. "Did my wand manage to make it?"

Remus shook his head regretfully. "Sorry. I don't know what we can do about getting you a new one. Ollivander is missing."

Sirius took a deep breath and muttered under his breath, low enough that even Remus's sensitive ears couldn't pick it up.

Remus opened the door to the kitchen to see Hermione braced over a cauldron, her long hair pulled back in tight bun, and her shirt sleeves pushed up to her elbows. Remus took a deep breath as his eyes widened in shock.

"Wolfsbane?"

Hermione gave him a small smile. "I asked Ariel if she could pick up the ingredients for me. I've never brewed it before, but I think it will turn out."

Remus couldn't help the smile that graced his face. Nor could he help it when he walked over to her, and embraced her from behind, his arms coming up to wrap around her midsection. He buried his face in her hair and breathed in the scent. She still smelled of strawberries.

Hermione sighed and let herself melt against him, her hand still stirring the cauldron in front of her. She couldn't let the base of the potion go to waste. She would have to start adding ingredients very soon. She allowed herself another moment against him before she swatted his hands away.

"Go, I have work."

Remus let out a small chuckle, knowing she was only turning him away because she didn't want to ruin all her hard work so far.

"Can you brew and talk at the same time?"

Hermione nodded as she continued stirring and readied the ingredients with her other hand, making sure they were within reach for when she had to add them.

"How's Harry?"

Hermione turned to Sirius who had a small smile on his face when he asked her. Hermione gave him a small smile in return, grateful for his support.

Hermione turned back to her cauldron grabbing the first ingredient and stirring it in, watching the brew to make sure it turned the right color and retained the correct consistency.

"As well as can be expected. He didn't have a great year, as I'm sure you've deduced. He became a little obsessed with Snape and Malfoy, trying to figure out what they were up to. None of us believed him, really. I guess he was proved right."

Hermione turned to look at Sirius and saw the look of absolute fury on his face. She had heard of the legendary hatred between Sirius and Snape, and had never figured out why. She felt so bad for Sirius, having missed another year of life, but he was here now and he would be able to help Harry.

"What mission did Dumbledore leave you three?"

Hermione wasn't surprised he asked in such a direct fashion. "I can't tell you." She held up a hand at Sirius when he opened his mouth to speak. "I'm sure that when Harry gets here he will tell you everything. I promised Harry I wouldn't speak of it to anyone save him and Ron. Only when Harry says it's okay will I tell you. Not until then. Believe me I would love to ask you if you can help me in my research, but there is nothing I can do until Harry returns from the Dursley's."

Sirius looked like he wanted to argue for a minute, but he stopped and nodded.

Remus understood Sirius's need to know. He was worried about Harry, but the loyalty between the three was almost legendary. Hermione wouldn't tell either him or Sirius anything until Harry gave the go ahead. Remus had a feeling that Harry would want to tell Sirius, and then hopefully he would be able to learn what it was they had planned as well. He couldn't help but be worried about his mate.

He knew deep down that he shouldn't be thinking of her as his mate, but he couldn't help it. Just standing near her had the wolf inside him feeling possessive and restless. He come to care for her in the few days he'd spent with her. He knew that he should be getting far away from her since they now had Sirius free, but he couldn't help but feel that he needed to protect her. He had to wait to figure out what it was they had planned so he could help.

"Can you tell us anything about it?" Sirius asked.

Remus was grateful that he was included in the question.

Hermione sighed. She knew they wouldn't give up, so she had to give them something. "It's essential that we do what we have planned, so Voldemort can finally die once and for all." Hermione looked between them. "I never understood why Dumbledore kept things from Harry and left it to where he had to figure things out on his own. It isn't right him telling Harry not to tell anyone but us, but Harry made me promise, and as much as I don't agree with it, I keep my promises to Harry. I'm sure as soon as we rescue him from the Dursley's that Harry will want to tell you everything."

Sirius gave Hermione a slow grin. "You sure have grown up, Granger."

Remus couldn't stop the growl that came out of his throat and the slight curling of his upper lip. He knew how his friend was with women, and he didn't want any of that charm directed towards his mate.

Sirius gave him a startled look and looked between him and Hermione's now blushing face. Hermione looked studiously at her cauldron, trying to hide her face.

"Sorry," Sirius said with a full shit-eating grin on his face. He didn't sound sorry at all.

Hermione rolled her eyes at Sirius and continued to make the Wolfsbane. "Out, both of you before you break my concentration. Ariel will probably be here in a few hours, and I'm sure it's about time to tell the rest of the Order that you're back."

Remus nodded. "I can call an Order meeting, although we'll have to go to the Burrow to do so. You'll have to be ready to fend off questions about the mission Dumbledore left you."

Hermione nodded. "I feel a little bad that I've left Ron with his mother so that she can harp on him, but I had other things to do. Now out with you."

Remus smiled and couldn't help but give her a quick hug from behind before he left her in the kitchen with Sirius trailing behind him.


	9. Chapter 9

A.N.: I know, I know. I'm a totally awful person. RL has been total hell. I had to go up north to visit my in-laws for Christmas (and we all know how in laws are), and then as soon as I got back I had to register for classes, because I'm FINALLY going back to school. And everyone in the financial aid department is apparently stupid. So I've been under quite a bit of stress, and that is why this has taken so long. The next chapter I already pretty much have planned out, and there will be much Hermione/Remus action. Depending on this week at school, it shouldn't take toooo long for me to post the next chapter.

Thanks for your reviews guys. You really are the best.

Chapter 9

Hermione came through the floo into the Burrow, Remus and Sirius right behind her. They had decided to get there last so they would only have to tell the story once. They cold hear all the voices chattering away in the kitchen and Hermione felt her heart speed up a little. She looked behind her to see Sirius give her a rather large grin. She could tell he was loving the dramatics of his return, even if he was a little incensed at having missed another year of Harry's life.

Remus made sure that he was in front of Sirius just in case anyone thought he might be an imposter. He followed Hermione through to the kitchen and saw everyone sitting around the large table, and some hanging around the edges of the room. Molly was running around serving tea and coffee, and there were several large plates of various sweets and snacks sitting on the table.

Hermione heard a gasp and then everyone stopped talking and turned to look at them. She could tell that everyone had spotted Sirius with them. Remus started talking immediately.

"This _is _the real Sirius, we rescued him from the veil with a little help," Remus said, looking at the twins and Charlie sitting at the table. Professor McGonagall looked up from her place at the table next to Moody with Arthur at his other side.

Complete silence met Remus's declaration. The twins were grinning and Bill was gaping with his mouth open. Ginny was no where to be seen, but Hermione had a feeling she was standing in a stairway somewhere with a pair of extendable ears.

Kingsley and Tonks were both silent since they had already known that Sirius was back and had even been to see him since he'd gotten up.

Suddenly there were voices where there had been none as everyone tried to speak at once. Hermione glanced at Remus beside her and he gave her a small wink that went unnoticed by everyone but her. Hermione moved out of the way so that everyone could see Sirius. She had a feeling that everyone would be asking her and Remus questions rather soon.

"It was you that broke into the Ministry!" Moody said in his booming voice.

Everyone quieted down after that and looked at her and Remus.

Hermione nodded. "Yes that was us. We had to get to the veil. I didn't think they'd let us in."

"Why doesn't everyone calm down and we'll relate to you what we found and how we got Sirius out?" Remus asked.

Hermione was ushered to a empty place next to Ron and across the table from Remus where the Weasley twins had gotten up so he could sit down with Sirius.

"Where did you find it?" Ron asked, knowing full well she'd probably found it in a book.

"I just came across it," Hermione said. She looked over at Remus and she could tell that he didn't like her sitting next to Ron. Hermione wanted to roll her eyes, but she didn't. She'd spent last night researching werewolf mating habits, and she knew he couldn't help it. His wolf wanted to claim her, and until he did he'd wouldn't like other males even being around her, let alone one he knew had romantic feelings towards her.

There was nothing Hermione could do at the moment though, so she launched into her story about how she'd found everything about the veil right there in the Black family library. She got to the part where Remus had went with her to find Ariel when everyone started asking questions about the vampire and how they knew she could be trusted.

Charlie cut it, "They know because she gave a blood oath that she would not harm anyone under their roof for as long as she lived."

Everyone went silent. Charlie raised an eyebrow.

Hermione realized that Charlie seemed to have developed a healthy respect for Ariel in the time that he'd known her, especially compared to the contempt he'd felt for her at the beginning. Hermione remembered his shielding of her when she was weak when Kingsley had pulled his wand on her.

Even Moody seemed to accept that answer. Hermione had a feeling that it was kind of like an Unbreakable Vow, but decided she would have to look it up later. If she could ever find the time. She had Remus to deal with, horcruxes to research, and Harry to rescue from Privet Drive.

Ron put his arm on the back of Hermione's chair and Remus barely held the growl back. He wanted to rip the redhead's arm from his body so he would never be able to put it next to his mate again. Only Sirius's warning squeeze on his arm stopped him.

Hermione's eyes widened as she took in Remus's face. She realized that Ron had put his arm on the back of her chair and she felt herself blush. She mouthed and apology to Remus and scooted forward in her chair. She didn't want to make a scene, since at the end of 6th year she would have been ecstatic to have him showing her any attention. She realized quickly that she much preferred Remus's older, lined face, to the goofy smile of Ron's.

Remus nodded his head to her slightly and took up the story where she left off, going into their encounter with Ariel, taking her to Grimmauld, her swearing the oath and how they got into the Ministry.

Hermione listened the strong cadence of Remus's voice and felt herself get lost in the rhythm of his speech. She couldn't help but keep her eyes glued to him, so she missed the knowing looks that passed between the twins and Charlie.

Remus finished his story, feeling Hermione's eyes on him the whole time he was talking. It went a long way to soothing the wolf, knowing he had her complete attention and that she wasn't giving any to Ron. Remus knew as soon as the meeting was over he would have to leave so Hermione could talk to Ron in peace. He didn't know what Hermione was going to tell him, but he knew he wouldn't be able to be near. It was best if he left as soon as the meeting was over.

Everyone started talking, wondering about how having a vampire on their side could do for them.

"When are we getting Harry?" Sirius asked loudly.

"We have a few plans," Moody said. "Although Mundungus's sounds like the best. We'll use Polyjuice potion and have identical Potters, all going to different places."

Hermione nodded. That did sound like a good plan.

"We need volunteers to be Harry," Moody said. "And volunteers to be protectors."

"I'll go as a Harry," Hermione spoke up immediately.

"Me too," the twins said together.

"And me," Ron said.

"I'll go," Remus said immediately.

"Me too," Sirius said.

"No," Moody said immediately. "We can't have them knowing you're back yet, Black. Right now we have a small surprise."

Sirius's face got a little red before Hermione cut in.

"Sirius, if something happened to you, just when Harry got you back, he would never forgive himself. He already has enough on his shoulders right now. Be here waiting for him when he gets back."

Sirius still looked like he wanted to argue but Remus put a hand on his arm. "I'm going. I'll make sure he's safe."

Moody nodded. Kingsley, Tonks and Bill all said they would go as well.

Remus looked across the table at Hermione. He didn't want her going, but he knew that there was no way that he could stop her if she had her mind set to it. He would try and be the one that was with her when they left. Then he could protect her.

Remus tried to keep his mind on the meeting, but he couldn't focus. They would be getting Harry in a few weeks, and soon his transformation would be here. He knew that the days before his transformation, he would have to stay away from Hermione if he hadn't claimed her by then. The wolf would be dangerous, trying to get close to his mate.

Finally the meeting broke up and everyone started talking in little groups.

Ron pulled Hermione off to the side.

"Now that you're done with all that you can come to the Burrow," Ron said with a big grin on his face.

Hermione scowled at him and pulled him farther into the corner so no one can hear. "I'm still looking for the stuff on the…" she looked around, and didn't see anyone but she didn't want to push it, "you know what. If I can find even one small thing, then it will help. Right now, I'm where I need to be Ronald. It's where I can be the most help."

Ron's face formed into a scowl. "You don't really want to be at nasty old Grimmauld with them do you?"

Hermione's scowl deepened. "Yes Ronald, I do. Now if you'll excuse me." Hermione stalked away from him, towards the floo. She had to get out of there away from him. She was angry, and she felt a little sorry for Ron. She didn't really have those kind of feelings for him anymore. He'd taken to long to act, and now Hermione had finally moved on. To someone that respected her for who she was, and genuinely appreciated her.

Hermione looked across the room where Sirius and Remus were talking to Arthur. She motioned her head towards the floo to tell Remus she was leaving. He nodded slightly to her and watched her leave through the fireplace.

Remus watched her go and politely broke off the conversation with Arthur so he could follow her. He had a feeling that Ron had upset her somehow. He was sure Sirius wouldn't get into to much trouble if he left him there alone. His mate was distressed. There was nothing he could do but follow.

Remus went through the floo to find Hermione in the kitchen making tea.

"What did he say to you?" Remus asked immediately.

Hermione turned to him with a smile on her face. She immediately went over to him and cuddled into his chest. Remus enveloped her in his arms, and Hermione felt safe and secure right where she was. She didn't want to move.

"He just tried to tell me that I had to stay there at the Burrow with him now that I've brought Sirius back."

Remus stiffened. He didn't want her near him, but if that was what she wanted…

"Don't even think of it Remus," Hermione said, looking up at him. "I want to be here with you."

Remus breathed a sigh of relief. He couldn't stop himself from leaning down to capture her lips with his. Her lips were soft and she was a little timid. His tongue begged entrance into her mouth and she let him in. He explored her mouth slowly, feeling every part of her mouth. The strawberry scent of her shampoo washed over him. His hands tangled in her hair, and her hands clenched parts of his robes. Remus let one of his hands slide down to her lower back. He pulled her against him.

Hermione gasped as she felt the unmistakable sign of his arousal against her stomach. She couldn't stop the instinctive reaction to buck against it.

It was Remus's turn to gasp. He pulled away from Hermione slightly and tried to catch his breath. He set his forehead against hers and let his fingers travel through her bushy curls. They were incredibly soft despite the bushiness of it. He took a deep breath in through his nose and realized that was a bad idea. He could smell the unmistakable scent of Hermione's arousal.

He took a step away from her. Hermione looked at him with a questioning look on her face, with a hint of hurt.

"I have stop now," Remus said. "Or I won't be able to."

Hermione's eyes widened for a second before she nodded. She wasn't quite ready for him to claim her, but she knew that eventually he would have to.

"We'll have to eventually," Hermione said slowly.

Remus held up a hand. "Not today." Not ever if he could help it. He didn't want to tie her to him, but he wasn't sure if he could stop himself anymore.

Hermione sat in the library with a book spread across her lap when Sirius and Remus entered. Both were clutching glasses of amber liquid that Hermione was sure was fyrewhiskey. She merely raised an eyebrow at both of them before turning back to the book, but she couldn't stop the smile from crossing her face as she looked down at the pages before her. It was a dark magic book that she'd found on one of the top shelves.

Sirius gave her a wary eye. "What are you reading, Granger?"

Hermione sighed and lifted the book up so they could see the title on the front of it.

Remus gave a small gasp. "That's really dark magic, Hermione."

Hermione turned to him, and gave him a look she was sure told him everything he needed to know, before she turned back to reading.

Remus sighed. She couldn't say anything again. He wished that he could help her. He'd done quite a bit of reading in his time, and he knew quite a bit about dark magic. He knew that whatever she was doing was incredibly important, he just wished, for probably the thousandth time, that he could help her.

Sirius leaned forward. "There's nothing you can tell us Hermione?"

Hermione looked up from her book and sighed. "No, believe me it would be nice to have a fresh set of eyes, but there's nothing I can tell you without betraying Harry's trust. We're getting Harry in two weeks so hopefully you can help then."

Sirius nodded. "Remus tells me you sent your parents away."

Hermione looked at Remus for a minute. He looked a little sheepish, like he wasn't sure if he was suppose to share the information. "They think their names are Wendell and Monica Wilkins. They don't remember they have a daughter, and their life's ambition is to move to Australia."

Sirius sat back in in his chair with shocked look on his face. Hermione could tell that he didn't think she had it in her to do something to that extreme.

Hermione sat forward in her chair, looking straight into Sirius's grey eyes. His black shaggy hair was artfully messy, and he looked older than his years, but his eyes told the age he was inside. "I've been apart of this war since I was twelve, since I became friends with Harry. I'm not going to balk at something now. I've been with him since the beginning and I'll be with until the end. I'll tell you what we're doing, if and only if, Harry says it's okay. So stop asking and stop wondering what I'm reading. You'll never figure it out, so give up."

Hermione picked her book up and walked back out of the library.

Remus couldn't help but smile at Sirius, and be extremely proud of his chosen mate. Even if he knew he couldn't have her.


	10. Chapter 10

Disclaimer: I don't own it, I'm not making any money from it, I am but a poor college student. Don't sue.

A.N.: Yay, another chapter! I know, don't faint. My muse is liking this story at the moment. So... there be smut in this chapter... and since everyone liked the idea of Ariel/Charlie, there is a moment between them at the end of the chapter.

I absolutely loved everyone's reviews. You guys are awesome, and you are definitely feeding my muse. Keep it up!

Chapter 10

Remus paced in his room, his skin feeling stretched tight against his bones. He felt like he'd drank a whole pot of coffee and he couldn't shake the jittery feeling in his limbs.

It had been two days since the instance with Hermione when they'd come back from the Burrow. He knew he couldn't hide in his room forever, but he was going to try. The wolf was snarling inside him, letting him know that it didn't like being away from their mate. He knew he couldn't leave because he promised he'd help to get Harry away from Privet Drive, but he knew he couldn't stay either. If he went away, only to come back and see Hermione, he'd attack her no matter if they were in a room full of people or not.

Sirius had already been up to speak with him and he'd told him that he thought Hermione was a consenting adult and he should be talking with her about this.

Everything was happening so fast, he just didn't know what to do. The smell of her arousal after their impromptu make-out session had hit him hard, and just thinking about it had his cock stirring in his trousers and wolf more jittery than he'd ever felt him this far away from a full moon. There was nothing that he could do about it. It was either claim Hermione, or run away forever. He had to choose very soon, he knew that. He was turning into a bloody animal and he didn't know how much longer he could go on like this. He only felt comforted when he was in Hermione's presence and then a whole other hunger consumed him. The wolf was telling him to take her, to make her his, and he wasn't sure if he'd make it to Harry's pick-up day.

He ran his hands through his hair again and kept his pacing up.

There was a knock on the door, and Remus could smell Hermione through it. The scent of her strawberry shampoo was a dead giveaway.

"Remus? I know you're in there. You can't keep yourself locked in your room forever."

Remus sighed and went to open the door. Hermione stood on the other side with her hands on her hips, giving him a look he'd seen her give the boys a few times before when she found out they'd played Quidditch instead of doing their homework.

She pushed past him into the room and Remus couldn't help the large breath he inhaled to take in her scent. His sense of smell was getting stronger every day it was closer to the full moon; Hermione smelled wonderful to him right now.

"I want you to come down for lunch. I'm worried about you," Hermione said.

Remus sighed and went to sit on his bed, pushing back the mound of books that he had discarded in his attempts to get his thoughts off his beautiful mate.

"It's getting worse isn't it?" she asked softly.

He nodded, not able to look at her. She came over to him and stood between his parted legs before kneeling down between them and putting her hands on his knees.

"Remus, you know I can't let you suffer like this," Hermione said slowly. She wouldn't let him. She cared about him to much for him to be like this.

Remus sighed and ran his hand through his hair, trying desperately not to pull her up into his lap and show her how much he wanted her. His body was already responding to her close proximity, and the wolf instincts were telling him to take her now, despite everything.

"We can't do that Hermione," Remus said.

Hermione narrowed her eyes at him and let out a little huff of breath. If he wouldn't claim her like he should, then she would just have to move it along herself. She picked up the books on the bed and started stacking them, knowing Remus probably thought she was just tidying up. As soon as she got the books off the bed though, she returned to him.

Remus looked up at her, his amber eyes flashing and Hermione felt a jolt go straight to the spot between her legs. She quickly straddled him, her legs going on either side of his hips.

"Hermione?" His eyes had gone wide, as his hands had instinctively found her hips. He knew he should have more control over his actions, but instead of taking his hands off her hips, he found them tightening, pulling her closer.

"This isn't going to go away, Remus," Hermione said with a pointed look. "You can't wish for it to go away. I know I'm much younger than you, but that doesn't stop how I feel about you. You're a good man, Remus Lupin, and I won't let you drive yourself crazy over this. We have to do something. Would it be so bad, being mated to me?"

"No, Hermione of course not. I'm a werewolf. Being mated to werewolf is almost as bad as being one. You'll be discriminated against just as bad as I am."

"Remus," she said in voice that he was sure she used for really small children, or people she thought were of lesser intelligence than her. "I'm already discriminated against. I'm the muggle-born friend of Harry Potter. Once we win, we won't have to worry about that so much."

Remus opened his mouth to tell her that werewolves would always be discriminated against when she put a finger to his lips. "I don't want to hear it. I know all the arguments you have because you've already said them. I have thought them over, and I still want to be your mate, no matter what. Whatever happens, we'll get through it together, okay?"

Remus sighed at her as he accepted the inevitable and pulled her close. There was nothing he could do to convince her that he couldn't be her mate. Why shouldn't he let her convince him when he wanted it so very badly? "What would I do without you?"

Hermione sniffed. "Wither away?"

Remus let out a bark of laughter and pulled her down for a kiss. That was a mistake. As soon as she opened her mouth to him, he wasn't sure he could stop. She tasted divine. His tongue explored every crevice of her mouth, and he rolled them so that he was on top. She moaned into his mouth as her hands explored his back.

His hand slipped up under her muggle shirt and skimmed across her flat stomach. He spread his fingers out, feeling the softness of her skin as she shivered against him. He let go of her lips and kissed down her neck as his hand slipped up under her bra to feel the roundness of her breasts. It was him who was shivering now as he felt the weight of her in his hand. She was perfectly proportioned and just the right size.

Hermione moaned as he flicked her nipple with his hand. "Remus."

He flipped them so she was underneath him and he was looking down her. Remus was cradled in her thighs and he pushed his erection against her trying to get some relief. She gasped and pushed right back, as close to the edge as he was. He pushed her shirt and bra up her chest and her beautiful breasts came into site. Her nipples were a soft pink and the perfect size, just as the rest of her was. He head came down and latched onto one of her nipples, softly drawing it into his mouth as his hips moved against her of their own accord.

She was thrashing wildly, her hips meeting his, as one had grabbed the duvet and the other held onto the back of his head, pushing him against her breast. She was magnificent in her passion. She was rubbing herself against him taking, her pleasure from him. One of his hands had slid down to cup her bum, his hand pulled her closer against him.

Hermione moaned and her eyes opened to half mast.

"You're magnificent, Hermione. Let go," he growled in her ear. He wanted to see her face as she came against him. He didn't think she was ready for him to go any further than this, but he would take whatever she would give him at this point. He didn't know why he was blessed with someone as beautiful and perfect as Hermione, but he was going to take advantage of it for however long she would have him.

"Remus," She moaned out and her eyes locked onto his as they widened and she trembled. Her mouth opened in a soundless scream as she came. She was flushed all the way down her chest, and Remus couldn't help but feel a manly satisfaction at the dreamy look in her eyes. His cock was still rock hard, but he put it out of his mind. He didn't care about himself, just his mate. His nose went down to her neck and inhaled her scent. A growl escaped his throat before he could stop it.

_Mine! _

Remus smiled at Hermione as she came out of her post-orgasm stupor. She looked up at him and smiled with a little blush staining her cheeks.

"That was…um…"

Remus chuckled darkly. "Someone call the _Prophet. _Hermione Granger is speechless."

She giggled and playfully swatted his arm. Then she looked at him quizzically for a second before she snaked a hand down to his crotch and gently cupped his cock through his pants.

Remus groaned loudly and pushed into her hand before he could stop himself. Her little hand felt to good on his hard cock. His head fell into the crook of her neck. "Hermione you don't have to do this."

"I want to," she said with a forcefulness that belied the tremor in her voice. Her hands reached up and undid the top button and zip of his pants before he could stop her. Her hand reached in under his boxers and found bare skin.

Remus groaned again and thrust into her hand. He slowly slid off of her so she could reach him better. She gently pushed his pants down with her spare hand, letting his erection spring free.

Hermione licked her lips as she looked at his extremely hard cock. It wasn't like the ones she'd seen in the anatomy books she read. He looked much more masculine-long and thick. She also didn't think the pictures in the books made her wet quite like this. She slowly reached over and wrapped her hand around the base of him.

"Show me," she said breathily. He wrapped his hand around hers and showed her how to stroke him and within a minute she was stroking him just the way he liked it.

Remus groaned as he watched his mate touch him. Her eyes were locked on her hand stroking him. He had to admit it was one of the most erotic sites he'd ever seen.

Hermione licked her lips and glanced at his face. He was watching her hand moving up and down on him. He felt so soft, yet hard. The head was weeping pre-cum and Hermione swirled over the top to catch the drop that dribbled down. Hermione wondered how he tasted. She had to know.

"Oh God!" Remus cried out as she flicked her tongue over the head of his cock. She smacked her lips, as if trying to figure out whether she liked the taste. Then she went back and put the head in her mouth and sucked lightly. Remus grabbed onto the blankets beneath himself, and tried to keep his hips still when all he wanted to do was thrust into her mouth.

"Hermione, love, you don't have to do this."

Hermione let go of the head of him and looked at him for a minute. "I want to touch you." Then she went right back to what she was doing with her mouth, taking a little bit more of him in her mouth and then adding her tongue to it.

Remus let his eyes close for a second, but he quickly opened them, wanting, _needing, _to see his mate doing this to him.

Hermione could only take about half of him into her mouth, so she used her hand to stroke up and down the rest of him. She might have never done this before, but she did have roommates in Gryffindor tower that were very open about their sex lives. She made sure to use her tongue on the head, and suck lightly as she pulled up. Judging by the noises he was making she was doing it adequately.

"Hermione… Hermione, I'm going to cum!"

Hermione made a split second decision to keep going so she sucked harder and quickened the strokes of her hand.

"Hermione!"

She felt his cock swell slightly in her mouth just before he jetted in her mouth in several spurts. She quickly swallowed it to get rid of it. It was salty and bitter-not something she completely enjoyed, but looking at the awed looked on her mate's face it was worth it.

"Merlin, Hermione." Remus hauled her up next to him and buried his face in her neck. "That was perfect."

Hermione giggled, pleased that she had satisfied her mate. Remus moved to cover himself and she let him then snuggled up to his side, her head on his chest.

"I've been reading the books Ariel brought over."

Remus tightened his arms around her.

"I know you think that you'll ruin me or something, but you're wrong." Hermione propped herself up on her elbow and looked at him in the eyes. "You're a good mad Remus. I know that when I think honestly, I wouldn't have wanted anyone my own age to begin with. You're an incredibly intelligent, kind man. I couldn't do better. I know plenty of people will be a bit delicate to begin with, but they will come around eventually."

Remus sighed and touched her face. "I don't know what I did to deserve you, Hermione. You really are the brightest witch of your age. If you're ready to face what happens as my mate, I'll take you. You'll be mine though. Completely mine."

"And you'll be mine," she said with a smile.

His face slowly morphed into a grin. "There's that too." He got serious again. "You won't be able to be without me, Hermione."

"I know. I did read the books Ariel brought me and she answered any questions I had pertaining to the material. She is quite knowledgeable about a great many things. For the first few months we won't be able to go for more than two days without being in the presence of the other. Your protectiveness should subside substantially when we mate, though you will still be protective to an extent."

Remus nodded at her. "Whatever you three have planned, I will have to go with you."

Hermione nodded. "I want to tell you. I'm sure that Harry will do so when he gets here, and if he doesn't I will. I just don't what to betray his trust without at least explaining everything to him. We need the help."

Remus nodded at her. "Sirius is going crazy, wanting Harry home. I've explained to him the protection of the Dursley's but he isn't always rational when it comes to his godson."

Hermione knew that was true. Look at what happened at the Department of Mysteries when Sirius fell through the veil. It was only a little over a week until they got Harry from the Dursley's. Hermione knew they needed to be ready to leave right after Bill's wedding. They only had a few days to get everything done. Hermione had to talk to Mr. Weasley about the tent she thought they might need. They could come back here, but she wanted to be prepared in case anything happened.

"Planning?" Remus teased.

Hermione nodded. "In case we have to go on the run."

Remus contemplated the coolness in her tone of voice. She had been expecting this. Remus wondered again what it was Dumbledore left the trio. It was important and had Hermione reading Dark Arts books. He still wasn't connecting the dots. Either it was something he would be smacking himself in the head over, or he would be completely dumbfounded when she told him.

"Let's go downstairs and get you something to eat," Hermione said standing up. "I know you haven't eaten today, and you need to take care of yourself."

Remus smiled as they got up from the bed and tried to tidy their rumpled clothing. There wasn't much they could do and Sirius would likely know what they'd been doing, but Remus didn't care.

He followed Hermione down to the kitchen where she made him a few sandwiches. Sirius showed up a few minutes later, sitting down and smirking at the two of them.

"I see you've made up your mind, Moony."

Remus couldn't help the grin that broke out on his face. His mate really was the best.

Hermione made more sandwiches, and they settled into to discuss Hermione's plans.

* * *

"You're sure about this?" Charlie asked.

Ariel nodded at him. "I wouldn't have brought it to your attention if I wasn't sure."

"Bloody hell!" Charlie said as he threw one of her books across the room.

Ariel raised an eyebrow at him. "While the sentiment is shared, I would very much appreciate it if you wouldn't throw my priceless books across the room." She tossed a few magazine at him. "Throw those if you feel the need."

Charlie couldn't help but start to chuckle at her. Ariel was really something else. He'd never meet another woman like her.

"Good. You're not beneficial when you're furious. Sexy maybe, but no good to either of us."

Charlie stopped at her observation. Her bluntness surprised him. It shouldn't really, since he'd never known her to be anything but blunt. She made observations and she told everyone within hearing distance what she thought of them.

A slow smile spread across Charlie's face as he regarded her. "Sexy?"

"Quite. Now," she said, redirecting the conversation, "we have to figure out how to stop the different clans from siding with Voldemort."

"You can't talk to your own people?" Charlie asked.

"No." She sighed, a completely human move that she didn't make often. "I have been shunned from my people long ago when I didn't commit to their beliefs. I have a few contacts, but no one in any place to make decisions."

"We knew this was coming," Charlie said. "The Order has been preparing for it. We sent Hagrid to the giants. Why didn't we send someone to liaise with your people?"

Ariel snorted. "Dumbledore did. The reason he didn't tell anyone is because the person's head was sent to him in a bag, detached from it's body."

"He didn't ask you?"

Ariel gave him a look that Charlie couldn't interpret. Most of her looks were nearly identical, but the longer he knew her, the more he could interpret each of her looks. She was very good at not giving anything away, but he knew he was better at studying her.

"Dumbledore and I never really got along. He did ask, but I declined on the fact that I would be killed on sight if I were seen in my clan's lands."

Charlie took a deep breath. "We're going to have to do something."

Ariel raised her left eyebrow a minute amount. "We will have to kill them. Do not try to spare my feelings on this matter. They be my clan, but they disowned me long ago as I disowned them. They are evil."

Charlie put his hand on her shoulder, wishing she didn't flinch every time he touched her. "I'm sorry."

"Your apology is appreciated, but not necessary. I must pack so that I can be ready to go."

"I'm going with you."

Ariel turned to him, a true expression of surprise on her face, blue-green eyes wide, lips open. "You would die."

"No," Charlie said slowly. "I won't. You need someone to watch your back."

She stayed quiet for so long that Charlie was beginning to think she wasn't going to answer. "I've never had someone to watch my back."

Charlie couldn't help but slowly walk over to her and put his hand on her face. She leaned into it slightly, like a cat preening for a scratch. "It will take some getting used to, but I'll be there for you to lean on." She was beautiful. He hadn't allowed himself to think of her like that, not until she'd taken the blood oath and helped them in getting Sirius from the veil. She was honorable, smart, and funny. He knew many wouldn't approve, but he didn't care. Many wouldn't approve of the relationship between Remus and Hermione, but he was sure that wasn't stopping them. He knew Ariel was dangerous, but he worked with danger every day. He breathed it, lived it.

"Okay, Charlie Weasley. I will trust you." She put one of her hands over the one he had resting on her face. "But for now, we must plan. We must be ready to leave soon."

Charlie nodded. "I can't miss my brother's wedding. My mother would have my hide."

Ariel laughed out loud, a deep throaty sound that heated his blood.

"We will stay, but we must leave soon after. I would like to devise a way to stay in touch with Hermione. We can pass information along."

Charlie nodded and broke away reluctantly. It was going to be a long few months, stuck in close quarters with her.


End file.
